


Life Happens

by Critical_Twin, OrionsProdigy95



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Olympics, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru Angst, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru Fluff, M/M, Single Parents, single dad
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-10
Updated: 2018-10-27
Packaged: 2019-02-13 06:02:25
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 39,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12977622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Critical_Twin/pseuds/Critical_Twin, https://archiveofourown.org/users/OrionsProdigy95/pseuds/OrionsProdigy95
Summary: A story in which Iwaizumi couldn't follow Oikawa to the Olympics, made a few mistakes through college, and now finds his way back to his best friend after all these years as a single father.Excuse the hasty writings and skips (~) throughout the story. This isn't going to be too in depth of a fic and has been a more of a stress relief for me to write than a completely serious work.





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

> Excuse the hasty writings and skips (~) throughout the story. This isn't going to be too in depth of a fic and has been a more of a stress relief for me to write than a completely serious work.  
> I saw a picture on some post or another in which IwaOi had a family, and was inspired to write this.
> 
> If you like it, leave a kudos and a comment! :)
> 
> P.S.  
> I despise writing OC characters, so that's why some points of this chapter are so rushed as well. Props to anyone who can write OC properly, I'm not one of you.

"Are you sure, Iwa-chan?" Oikawa asked him seriously. He was standing in the middle of his livingroom, his bags around him, ready to head out to the airport.

Hajime nodded, crossing his arms and staring at the Olympics jacket across Tooru's arm. "I'm positive. I'm not letting you throw out something as awesome as this just because I wasn't picked. You'll have fun, and you'll do well. Bring me back a few medals," he replied firmly, meeting his amber gaze.

"...I'm gonna miss you," the brunette pouted, hugging him tightly.

"...Me too..." he whispered, his arms wrapping around Tooru with bruising strength. "...Hit 'em til they break, Tooru."

"...I will, Iwa-chan..."

Watching Tooru go that day hurt more than anything in his life, but there was nothing he could do about it. 

_I always knew it would be you._

~

Iwaizumi sighed to himself as he shambled down the sidewalk, his duffle over his shoulder and jacket bunched close. His breath fogged across the air in front of him, smoke from an overworked engine. He inhaled sharply, the icy air cutting through his nose and stabbing his lungs as he took step after step, counting the cracks in the sidewalk. 

His sneakers halted in front of a window display, a 40% discount on flat screens; the screen was bright and clear, the speakers muffled through the glass as Shittykawa’s ecstatic, breathless voice chattered about the match they’d just won against another country, advancing them in the Olympics.

Hajime wanted to move. It was frigid out and getting late, not to mention that a cold in the middle of season would earn him more than a few lectures from his coaches…

But at the same time, when his eyes finally lifted to the screen tiredly and studied Oikawa, grinning so with sweat dripping from his brow, he knew he just  _couldn’t_ move.

An abrupt commercial flickered on screen, jolting him out of his trance, and Hajime forced himself to move once again, joints swinging in rusty, stiff steps with a heavy heart.

~

**Hey Iwa-chan! Sorry I’ve been so busy, LOL. Coaches hardly give us a break anymore, ya know? And when we’re not playing volleyball or working out, we’re doing team bonding. Enough about me though! How is college? Missing me yet? ;P I bet you’re completely lost, huh? -Shittykawa Saturday 6:30 PM**

Hajime glanced down at the text silently for a while, rolling the phone in his hand as he debated answering him and what to say.

Eventually, he typed back a short reply, not in the mood to entertain his friend; he had too much homework to finish up anyways.

**College is busy too, between classes and volleyball. Glad you’re enjoying yourself. You wish. -Iwa-chan Saturday 7:20 PM**

**It’s fun though, right? Hope you’re not working too hard, Iwa-chan! Ya gotta have some fun, too! No partying at all? You must be really depressed without me, heh? -Shittykawa Saturday 7:22 PM**

“Tch. Shittykawa.” Hajime tossed his phone aside, focusing on his school work as best as he could.

**It's just more school. -Iwa-chan Saturday, 8:15 PM**

Hajime tried to stay in touch with him, but he'd never been good at that with friends and even family; in the end, his contact with Tooru dwindled to simply following him in the news. 

~

The first time he agreed to attend a party with his college teammates was when Oikawa posted a photo to his Instagram page; it was a picture of himself and his Olympic team, with the caption  **We won GOLD! So proud of my team! #squadgoals #wholesquad #bestvbteam**

_Ah... I would have thought he'd call me before this... What a way to find out._

“Oi, Iwaizumi! You coming or what?” his new setter called, holding up the rest of the team.

“…Yeah," he nodded, standing sharply and stuffing his hands into his pockets, phone silenced in his jacket. 

~

Lost about what he wanted from college and clinging to his volleyball scholarship, Iwaizumi often nights found himself sitting alone or with his team in bars; some were louder than others, and he prefered the more quiet booths to sip at some cheap beer, watching people come and go, but never really jumping into the crowd. 

He found a little purpose in the form of a woman named Leiko, who frequented one of the shadier bars he hung out at; she had issues, lots of them, and while that wasn't really great for her, it was for him. He needed a distraction, someone to take care of again, and she fit into that agenda almost better than Oikawa did. 

They began a more intimate relationship after a week of knowing one another, and for a good few months, Hajime was content; he'd never had a girlfriend in high school, not with Oikawa always around.

His mother was less than pleased with the development, however; she knew Leiko was trouble, especially when Hajime's performance on the court began to decline, and his grades swiftly followed suit. 

The few remaining friends he had didn't much care for her either, and his teammates reminded him constantly that she was bad news; she had an issue with alcohol, money borrowing, and ex-boyfriends. It certainly wasn't cheap being her partner, but you could never put a price on love.

-

“You alright?” Hajime grunted, watching Leiko shift in her chair; the woman had been fidgeting all night long, her eyes hardly meeting his.

“What? Um, yeah,” she waved off quickly, downing her beer and waving for another. 

“…Really?” he affirmed, brow arching as he sipped from his own bottle.

“Ye-”

“Leiko! Get your ass up!” A mammoth of a man stalked over to their table, clearing the path ahead of him to the side with a powerful sweep of his arm.

She flinched into her seat, eyes wide with panic. “Leave me alone, Ishin. We’ve already been through this,” she gulped, visibly trembling in the booth. 

Hajime's chest burned with resentment at the interruption, scowling harshly “Is there a problem?” he demanded, standing and shielding her from the much taller brute with his arms crossed.

“Ge’ outta my way, you punk,” he snarled at Hajime, his vodka-tainted breath puffing into his face, spittle splashing from his fat lips.

The raven lifted a hand and wiped off his face pointedly, lip curling in disgust. “I don’t think so."

"Hajime," Leiko balked, her shaking fingers hooking in the back of his shirt.

Ishin drew himself up to his full height, towering over him. "You think you can stop me, you half-pint midget? Get the hell out of my way before I squash you like a bug." 

“Try it.”

“Iwa-chan!”

The man got one good hit on Hajime, right in his gut, before the bar security rushed over; fighting would have meant an end to his scholarship, but he wasn’t about to let the blockhead bother Leiko.

He sat back down with a bag of ice, letting Leiko flutter over him worriedly and enjoying it, despite the burning pain in his stomach; it reminded him of other times, a brunette fretting over volleyball injuries, tutting under his breath in an annoyingly sing-song tone.

-

Despite all of the trouble and baggage that Leiko brought him, he never left her; he saw Tooru in her, the way she held herself, the way she put on a front that everything was going her way, the nights he spent holding her, an inch from shattering to pieces, the way she trailed after him and called him "Iwa-chan"... 

They dated for about 11 months, during which a lot of booze, sex, and trouble-making trailed in their wake; it was easy for Iwaizumi to get lost in her, to be happy with his life.

But then something changed.

She started disappearing, sometimes not catching up to him for weeks, until eventually she just stopped coming around altogether. 

The last he ever heard from her was a single text, one that smashed his fragile peace of mind: 

**Goodbye. -Leiko**

About four months later, the local hospital called to ask if he would claim a baby.

His baby.

Hajime had no idea when or how, but Leiko had gotten pregnant at some point. He wasn't sure if this was why she ran, or why she didn't tell him. The doctor informed him that the mother had listed him as the father, and that she'd died due to complications with the birth and having drugs in her system.

Hajime didn’t know what to do. He wasn't even out of college; how could he have had a kid? He just found out the girl he loved had died, and now he was supposed to be a single dad?

He went by that afternoon in a daze his chest aching fiercely. The realization didn’t really hit him until he was standing outside of the NICU, a nurse rearranging his arms gently with empathy in her eyes, a crying blue bundle in the arms of another patient nurse.

His son wailed until he was placed in his arms, staring up at Hajime quietly. He bent his head and murmured soft words against the tuft of raven fluff, a calm slowly settling in his chest. 

It certainly wasn't going to be easy; he'd never thought of being a father, and being a single dad in the middle of college with a volleyball career? It seemed hopeless. He was almost tempted to give up right there.

But when he looked down at the infant, cheeks red and puffy from crying and watching him with awe, he would never, ever give him up. This was his son.

"Katashi..." he breathed, cradling him closer. "It's okay... It'll be okay..."

-

One of the most difficult moments of his life was the call he had to make next, a pile of second-hand baby supplies sitting in the corner of his tiny apartment.

“Kaa-chan… I have to tell you something,” Hajime professed quietly, his phone caught between his shoulder and ear, his arms cradling his son. 

_“Did you finally break up with that Leiko? I told you she was bad news, didn’t-_

“She…left.” Hajime breathed out sharply, swallowing hard; he hadn't even told her when Leiko took off. He certainly wasn't ready to tell her the truth, needing to keep it to himself; it was his burden to carry, and no one else's.

_“It’s really for your own good, Musuko. I mean honestly the amount of problems she has and the trouble she gets you into-”_

“Kaa-chan," he cut off, gritting his teeth as he told her, "There's a baby. He’s mine.” 

Utter silence met him, static crackling through the speakers. Finally a weary sigh filled his ear.

_“…You’re sure it’s yours?”_

“He is mine,” he repeated firmly, looking down at his dozing son, cradled awkwardly against his chest. 

_“…What’s his name?”_

Hajime swallowed tightly and shifted. “…His name is Katashi …I know you’re mad,” Hajime muttered, grinding his teeth slightly as his eyes began to burn. “And I know it’s sudden and believe me I’m still… processing it all…”

_“…I am. I’m upset with your carelessness,”_ his mother agreed, her tone softening gradually. _“You are still my son, Hajime. And he is my grandson... He must be gorgeous."_

Hajime lifted a hand to rub across his eyes, clearing his throat, “Yeah. He’s beautiful, Kaa-chan… I don’t… I don’t know what I’m doing. And I just- I can’t do it by myself.” The last part was the hardest to admit. “Not with college and volleyball and him…”

There was another sigh over the phone, and then some rustling as she moved around.  _“…I’ll fly up to you. Your father will have a fit but he could do with some time on his own anyways. Make sure you have a spare bed in your apartment for me.”_

“Thank you, Kaa-chan,” Hajime breathed, relief washing over him as he watched his son. "I love you.”

_“I love you too, Musuko. I’ll see you soon.”_

\---

“You didn’t.”

Hajime crossed his arms and stared at the infant, very focused and making little stressed noises, a stench rising rapidly from his diaper.

“You just had to wait until your grandmother went to the store, didn’t you?” he sighed, gathering the baby into his arms and heading for the changing station they set up. “Hey now, don’t start crying buddy. We’ll get you cleaned up,” he muttered as Katashi squirmed, starting to wail about the mess he’d made in his diaper.

_Shit…How did she do that?_

He growled slightly as he began to get a headache, gagging at the smell as he removed the dirty diaper and grabbed a baby wipe.

“God, what did you eat?” Hajime groaned, spitting into the trash and opening a window, his eyes watering.

Next he knew was the powder, and then he had to fit the new diaper on him, struggling a bit with getting the tabs on right as Katashi didn’t make the task easy on him.

Finally clean and done, he stopped crying and giggled at Hajime instead as he wiped his face, features still scrunched up from the stench.

“You’re one smelly brat, Tashi,” Hajime grumbled at him, leaning down and kissing his forehead gently.

~

The next few years went by in a blur; as soon as Hajime graduated college, he moved himself and Katashi back near home to get a job and still be close to his mother, who frequently visited them to help out and baby sit. He wouldn't be able to do it without her.

Hajime hadn't thought much about any of his previous life in a long time, too focused on the things in his reach and in need of his immediate attention. 

The first time he thought about anything other than Katashi and work was when he caught up on the Olympics with Tooru, who had been joined by some of his old teammates and rivals when Katashi was four, and the boy loved to hear stories about them all.

"Just tell me one more, Tou-chan, please! I promise I'll go to sleep," he begged Hajime, looking up at him with shining eyes.

"Fine," he sighed, smiling sternly, "But you'd better actually go to sleep this time."

"I promise," he nodded eagerly, lying back to prove his point.

"Let's see...You know that I used to be best friends with Oikawa Tooru? And you know how cool of a setter he is?"

"Yeah! He's my  _favorite_!"

"Heh, that's right...Well, he's really just a big dork," he chuckled, tapping his son's forehead. "He loves aliens; he used to wait for hours at his window, watching for when they would come to get him... We would sleep over in his back yard in tents, and open up the top to watch the stars... and he absolutely is terrified of bugs."

"Really? But I love bugs!" Katashi gasped, cupping his cheeks exasperatedly.

"I know! What's not to like?" he implored, tucking an arm behind his head and staring up at the luminescent stars tacked to the ceiling. “He’s got a big ego to go along with it all, too. Girls would always ask him out and bring him gifts, and he was always an amazing player, though he definitely had to work for it… He’s a relatively good guy, though, once you bring him back down to earth.” 

“Why don’t girls ask you out and bring you gifts, Tou-chan?” Katashi questioned, tilting his head curiously. “Did you scare them all away? Is that what happened to Kaa-san?”

Hajime blushed at the first question and flinched at the second, looking away from his son for a moment. Once he felt more composed, he turned back to him and replied, “Girls just liked Bakakawa more, Tashi.”

The boy watched him for a moment before glancing away. “…….Was it because of his hair?” Katashi suggested thoughtfully, pinching his chin.

Hajime snorted, ruffling Tashi’s hair affectionately. “Probably.” 

He chattered about Oikawa for a while longer before realizing his son was asleep, tucking him into bed before heading to his own.

The raven sighed at the old ache that welled in his chest, running a hand through his hair and lying back into the pillows, exhaustion beating down his depressive insomnia. 

~~

"Oikawa's mother wanted me to give this to you." Hajime's mother proffered a thick rectangle of cardstock, his five-year-old at the table wolfing down a bowl of lucky charms.

"Hm?" Hajime glanced up from his duffle bag, inspecting the paper.

"For the charity game tomorrow. I know it's your day off, too. I think you should go," she explained, pinning the ticket high on the fridge. "I'll watch Katashi."

"...Kaa-chan, I don't think-"

"There isn't any need to think about it. You'll go and support your friends," she cut off sternly, staring him down for a moment. "...You're working too hard, Hajime... Just take the time to destress..."

He frowned at her and then shrugged. "Stressed spelled backwards is desserts, " he reminded, kissing her cheek and pausing. "...I'll think about it." 

"Good."

"Bye, Tou-chan!"

"Bye Katashi-kun. Be good at school, hm?" he smiled, kissing his forehead and ruffling his hair.

He giggled and nodded, waving him out the door.


	2. Catching Up

_Why am I even here? I should have just gone to a bar or something and hung around long enough to not be suspicious..._

Iwaizumi shifted uncomfortably as he waited for the woman to stamp his hand, surprised as she placed a VIP badge around his neck and sent him off to a special seating section.

_Of course..._

Shaking his head, he settled into one of the chairs with a bottle of water, watching the court silently and practicing controlling his breathing and the pain in his chest as he spotted familiar faces.

The game that followed was absolutely spectacular, the Olympics team winning of course but not by much; it was just enough to get Hajime fired up, standing practically against the glass window the last few moments of the game. 

_Wow..._

He let his forehead rest on the glass, not caring about smudging it or what he looked like, staring at the court silently, watching players walk off, staff clearing and cleaning, the longing in his muscles physically aching.

It felt like moments later when he suddenly realized the VIP room was filling up again, voices loud and the temperature climbing as sweaty players came in to greet the donors.

He swallowed tightly, daring to look over his shoulder slowly and tearing his gaze from the court.

Oikawa was there, of course, the man in the center of a knot of players from their past and grinning smugly, flushed with the thrill of his victory. 

The throbbing pain suddenly crashed through him at the sight; he was certainly happy for him, definitely proud, but... it hurt. It hurt a lot that he wasn't standing with him on the court anymore, that he wasn't visiting VIP members and signing autographs, that he didn't even know Tooru anymore.

The smile dropped from his face and he turned back to the court, wondering if he could slip out unnoticed.

"Huh! Iwa-chan?! Is that you?!" 

_Of fucking course._

Hajime took a deep breath, steeling himself before turning around to face that familiar set of shining chocolate eyes.

"...Hey Shittykawa," he shrugged finally, pocketing his hands and rocking on his heels a bit, glancing over the entire team that was now staring at him.

Tooru trotted over, flinging his arms around Hajime in a display of his typical overdramatic personality. 

"I missed you! It's been so long..."

He jolted and winced at the volume, hesitantly hugging him back and s the lump in his throat making his voice raspier than usual. "Yeah... You're playing pretty good still.”

"Could have been better, actually," the man frowned slightly, but he shook it off quickly. "Where've you been? I haven't even heard from you in...I don't even know how long."

"Got caught up in college and life stuff," he replied gruffly, shrugging slightly; a little ball of anger burned in his stomach at the question, because what right did he have to ask that so casually, so easily? "Don't play that much volleyball anymore. Just a minor league team sometimes," he rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry.”

_I guess that one is my fault… I was the one who stopped answering._

Tooru looked aghast at the idea of not playing volleyball, but he tilted his head slightly at Hajime's apology. 

"...yeah...I guess it happens," he said slowly, eyes watching him with something Hajime couldn’t pin.

He cleared his throat as it began to get thick again, pulling at the collar of his shirt and shifting. "I really have to get back soon, Shittykawa. Can't stay up too late. It was really good seeing you," he added, speaking in a mumble. "I'll get in touch before you leave, alright?"

"What...? But Iwa-chan, it's Saturday night and you're...twenty five. It's not like you have a bedtime. Have some drinks with us, at least," Tooru insisted, tightening his grip. “And stop calling me Shittykawa,” he added with a teasing pout.

_Damnit…_

He swallowed hard again and just nodded, hardly able to speak without giving away the hurt he was feeling. "Kay, but I need to use the restroom. Be back in a bit."

"Okay..." Tooru nodded after a moment, releasing his hold on Hajime's shoulders; he watched him leave the room, eyes burning into his back. 

Hajime, as soon as he was out of sight, sprinted to the nearest bathroom, locking himself in a family style one and leaning on the sink as hot, definitely angry tears rolled down his cheeks; he just needed to be away from him for a moment.

_That should have been mine too.... Damn it... I don't want to... Always made me do shit I didn't want to... Damn it Tooru... I wish…_

It was a good fifteen minutes before he could pull himself together, washing his face with icy water until he looked completely normal again, his usual scowl in place; he needed to settle down, breathe, and act as normal as ever.

"What took ya so long, Iwa-chan?"

"Lines were long, Bakakawa," he told him, ignoring the slight rasp in his throat and downing the rest of his water. “Impatient as always.”

"Uh huh....right...well, anyway, how've things been with you?" he asked, watching him with narrowed eyes.

"It's been alright... Really busy with work now, since I finished college after I stopped partying. I'm a trainer at one of the gyms around here, and I play volleyball on occassion like I said..."

"Iwa-chan partying? That's a weird one," Tooru remarked with a laugh, taking a pull from his glass. 

"It relieved a lot of stress and my team that I'd been playing with liked to party a lot," he shrugged again, stuffing his hands into his pockets. “Worried I was having too much fun without you?”

Tooru shrugged, keeping his smile.

"I guess that's fair. I’m glad you had fun, Iwa-chan, really...this is pretty much all I do anymore," he mused, gesturing to the jersey he still wore.

"And I'm sure you hate it," he rolled his eyes, his tone perhaps a tad too scathing rather than joking.

Tooru rolled his eyes, but there was a hint of something Hajime couldn't quite identify in his gaze. 

"Oh yeah, it's just terrible," he agreed. 

"...Well at least you're not spending your days working a small job at the local gym," he shrugged again, shuffling on his feet; he declined a drink that was offered to him with a polite shake of his head.

"Hey...you're helping people, Iwa-chan. It may not be the most glamorous job, but I bet the ones that lose weight really appreciate it," Tooru said mildly. 

"They're scared of me," he argued lightly, shaking his head. "No one wants to take my boot camp class anymore. I don't really get it."

Tooru nearly choked on his drink, Hajime's words startling a laugh out of him. 

"I-iwa-chan, I can't say I'm surprised," he chuckled, thumping himself in the chest. 

"Ouch," he arched his brow, smiling a little at least; it was getting a little easier to forget, to just talk with Tooru like he used to.

"Hey, you're the one who took my attempt at making you feel good and ruined it." 

"Mah. I know... I don't mind it, really, it's just not what I imagined I'd be doing," he sighed. "But I had to get a job and it was the easiest to get..."

"Yeah..." Tooru trailed, that hint of something flickering through his eyes again; it was really starting to bother Hajime. He emptied his glass and waved to the bartender for a refill. "So, Iwa-chan. I suppose you've got a hot wife or something by now, huh?" 

"Funny," he hummed, leaning back on one of the chairs and glancing at the ceiling, masking the brief pain his question caused. "I don't. Hard to believe, I know."

Oikawa shrugged slightly. 

"I think so. I mean, look at those studly muscles. You'd make someone a fine trophy husband, so long as no one looked too close at your face," Tooru smirked at him. 

Hajime punched his arm for that one, though not hard enough to deal damage. "Hmph. Still a brat."

"Did you really think that would change?" Tooru chuckled, shaking his head and taking a drink before continuing. "Really, though. Not even a girlfriend?" 

"...No," he sighed, crossing his arms. "Had one in college for a bit...Kinda fell out. Haven't dated much since." Hajime didn't mention Katashi because... well, he wasn't really sure. Perhaps it was too private a matter for him just yet...

"Oh. Put you off, then," Tooru said, staring into the depths of his glass for a moment. "You know, they say all work and no play makes Iwa-chan a dull boy." 

"Just haven't found the right person yet," he hummed with an eye roll, nudging him. "...You okay, Tooru?" he frowned, his brow furrowing; in a moment he could forget about his own problems, because it was pretty obvious there was something very wrong with his old friend, and Tooru had always come first, and that was a hard habit to break.

"I'm all right, Iwa-chan. How could I not be?" he chuckled, waving at the air as though to brush off the mood.

"...Because I can tell, Bakakawa."

"Well...I'm not spilling before you do," Oikawa said, looking over at him with those sharp molten eyes.

_Damn it._

"I haven’t got anything to spill, Shittykawa," he assured, checking his phone. "Crap. Hold on." He hopped down from his chair and stepped outside, taking the call from his mother.

“ _Tou-chaaann…When are you coming home?_ ” Katashi whined sleepily over the phone.

“Soon, Tashi… You need to get to sleep for grandma.”

_“I don’t wanna, Tou-chan! How can I sleep without your stories?”_

“Grandma has good stories too, Bud,” he chuckled, shaking his head. “Tell you what. Get to sleep and when you wake up, I’ll have Godzilla pancakes and scrambled eggs cooked up for breakfast.”

_“Huh! Really?”_

“Really,” he smiled, leaning against the wall. “…I’ll see you in the morning, Bud, alright? I love you.”

“ _Love you too, Tou-chan!_ Almost _as much as Godzilla! Goodnight!_ ”

Hajime pocketed his phone and jogged back into the room, Tooru waiting at the set of chairs they'd claimed.

"Sorry. That was my Mom just checking in."

"Your mom still calls you when you go out?" Oikawa's eyebrows arched nearly to his hairline. 

He frowned at Tooru and, thinking fast, replied, “She gave me the ticket. She wanted to make sure I came.”

Tooru, for all his faults, was (unfortunately) not an idiot. He gave Hajime an unconvinced look, arms crossing over his chest.

“It’s true,” he argued at the look, crossing his arms. “And she’s house sitting for me, and wanted to know when I would be back. Why are you looking for shit where there isn’t any, Oikawa?” he snapped, and then felt guilty over it and calmed himself with a breath. “…So what’s wrong with you, Tooru? Because I know there is something. Are you fighting with someone on the team? Seems worse than that,” Hajime muttered, staring down the brunette hard.

Oikawa stared back at him for a few long moments and then shrugged slightly and turned away. 

“Something like that,” he waved off. “It’s nothing to worry about. I’ll get over it.” 

“…Tch. Whatever,” he scowled, kicking back in his chair to sulk silently.

“…anyway. I’m on light duty for my knee. The coaches want me to take a rest period of a few months during our off season to let it heal. So you might be seeing more of me around, considering one of our training facilities is here,” Oikawa said after a moment. 

“Great,” he grumbled, though the sarcasm wasn’t too heavy. “…Suppose that means we’ll be having a family get together…”

_Not going to be able to hide Tashi for too long…_

“It would be fun, don’t you think?” Tooru smirked. “Kaa-chan misses you. And so does Akira.” 

“Ah… My face doesn’t,” he sighed; the women always pinched his cheek out of habit from when he was young, and it annoyed the shit out of him and delighted Oikawa.

Tooru laughed. 

“Good thing Iwa-chan is such a tough brute.”

“Hmph…Right…”

He ended up staying and talking with Tooru for a while longer before getting up to go, Oikawa following him out; the brunette’s bag caught on the door as they exited and a couple things popped out, Hajime crouching to catch them before they rolled away.

“Thanks, Iwa-chan,” Oikawa smiled sheepishly, hurriedly refilling the bag.

“Clumsykawa,” he shrugged, passing him a roll of deodorant, a pair of shorts, his wallet, and then pausing on the pill bottle he picked up last.

Oikawa snatched it from his hand upon noticing what he was holding, stuffing it into his bag swiftly. 

“Well. I’ll see you around, right, Iwa-chan?” he said, his voice forcefully cheerful as he zipped his duffle securely and slung it back over his shoulder. 

“…Anti-depressants.” He looked up at Tooru, suddenly understanding why he’d stopped texting him two years ago. 

Shrugging, Oikawa glanced away. 

“You should probably get home to your mother, Iwa-chan. I’m sure she’s waiting…” he muttered, shoulders hunching slightly in a most un-Oikawa manner. 

Hajime stood slowly, not wanting to scare the brunette off. “…I guess…”

_But…_

He grabbed Oikawa’s shoulder and wrapped his arm around him, pulling him roughly into a probably too tight hug. 

_You’re important. Always have been, and I can’t even make myself change it… Damn it… I should have been in touch. I should have been there. I should have seen it._

“…it’s not your fault, Iwa-chan,” the brunette muttered, limp and unresponsive in his arms as he demonstrated his talent for picking Hajime’s motives apart the same way he dissected his opponents. “You have your own life to worry about. You shouldn’t be burdening yourself worrying about mine, too.” His tone was rather flat.

“It’s not a burden.” 

He rubbed Oikawa’s back, grumbling a bit and trying to get some kind of response out of him; it actually frightened him, how unresponsive and dead the brunette seemed.

“…it is, though…and you don’t seem like you want to carry it anymore, Iwa-chan. It’s okay. It happens. People move on and change... I can take care of myself.” 

Hajime ground his teeth at the guilt he felt at his words.

“…It’s not that I don’t, Shittykawa. You’re my best friend.”

“Didn’t know.”

Hajime let go of him at that, shoving him back a step. “I'm the one that got left behind, Shittykawa. It’s not my fault you got so huge and made a new team. I didn’t think you needed me,” he snapped, stuffing his hands into his pockets and turning away. “Whatever. I don’t want to talk about this shit. I’ve gotta get home. Text me when you decide what the hell you want to do.” He stalked to his car angrily.

He didn’t glance back to see his defeated silhouette standing in the glow of the doorway, anger burning in his gut.


	3. The Truth

“Tou-chan! Wake up! Godzilla pancake time!”

Hajime groaned as small hands shook at his shoulder impatiently, opening his eyes to find a matching set staring down at him. 

“Right… Just a second, buddy. Let me wake up…”

“Hurry! I’m hungry, Tou-chan!” the boy whined, bouncing on the free space of his bed in his Godzilla footie-pajamas. “My tummy’s gonna eat me!”

Hajime chuckled at that, sitting up and letting the boy tug him along to the kitchen.

“Can you get out the plastic bowl, Tashi?” he asked as he gathered the ingredients they needed to mix in the bowl.

“Yeah, Tou-chan!”

They spent the morning making pancakes and eggs, and then feasted over morning cartoons; Hajime left his son to the TV while he cleaned up, wiping the flour off of Katashi’s face.

His mother called him shortly, wanting to know all about the evening.

“They won,” Hajime shrugged shortly, washing the dishes.

“ _…what happened, Hajime_?” she asked gently. 

“…I didn’t tell him about you know. And I found out he’s taking anti-depressants. And I yelled at him cause he pis-er-ticked me off as always, and then I left.” Saying it now, he felt guilt churn in his stomach uncomfortably.

“ _...if you’re not going to tell him everything, Hajime, you probably shouldn’t expect him to tell you everything. I’m not saying you were wrong not to tell him; it’s a big deal and I know how uncomfortable the situation makes you. I’m just saying…well, he’s always had your number, Hajime. Just like you’ve always been able to read him like a book.”_

“…I know…” he muttered, sighing again and setting the last dish aside to dry. “…I’ll tell him, I just… I don’t know when to do it. Or how, for that matter.”

_“Maybe start by texting him. I’m sure he’s upset. You know how he always was.”_

Hajime sighed, fiddling with the pan in his hands as his stomach squirmed guiltily. 

“…yeah…I didn’t exactly leave things on a high note…” 

“ _If you need a sitter, just let me know_ ,” she hummed. _“Love you, Musuko_.”

“Love you too, Kaa-chan.”

“LOVE YOU GRANNY!”

“ _Tell the brat I love him too. See you.”_

Hajime chuckled and hung up, ruffling Katashi’s hair, “She loves you too.”

He beamed and then faded a bit, becoming more serious. “Did you fight with your friend, Tou-chan?”

“Huh?” he blinked crouching down to his level.

“You were saying you yelled at someone. Did you have an arg-agum-fight?”

“Argument,” he supplied, sighing a bit. “…Kind of. It’s complicated, Bud.”

“Well,” he stated, drawing himself up and crossing his arms like Hajime did when he was going to lecture the boy, “Staying mad at each other isn’t gonna help. You need t’ talk and make up.”

Hajime blinked at him and then sighed, ruffling his hair. 

“Yeah, yeah…you guys had a visit from the guidance counselor again, didn’t you?” 

“…We’re talking about you here, Tou-chan, not me.”

“Learned that one from him, too, eh?” he chuckled, giving him a little push at the couch. “Go on. Why don’t you find your volleyball stuff, hm?”

“Okay!”

While his son was busy, he pulled out his phone and fiddled with it a moment.

**Hey. Sorry. I was just upset. You know how it is… At least I hope you remember. -Iwa-chan**

**Anyways, I just…I guess I need to tell you about something. And I’m not sure how to. -Iwa-chan**

He wanted to write more, but he wasn’t sure how to explain; he wasn’t embarrassed about having a son, of course not, but… perhaps the situation? It was just so unlike him, so unpredictable… It was uncomfortable for him to think or even talk about.

It was after he’d dropped Katashi off at school before he got an answer to the texts. 

**I know you say stupid things, Iwa-chan. I also knew you were keeping something from me. -Tooru**

**It’s embarrassing and I didn’t want you to know about it. Especially since you don’t seem to trust me anymore the way you used to. I’m sorry I left you behind, but if you recall, you’re the one who told me to go. I would have stayed until we were both good enough to get picked up if you’d asked me to. -Tooru**

Hajime read the text a few times and then sighed heavily, leaning his head on the steering wheel a moment. 

**I know. That’s why I told you to go. You shouldn’t have to hold yourself back on anyone’s account… I understand, but... you shouldn't be embarrassed. I'm just glad you're getting help... I need to tell you mine. I’d rather not tell you over text. -Iwa-chan**

He pocketed his phone and drove off from his son’s school before they could complain about him bringing the boy in just before the bell rang. When he reached the gym where he worked, he checked his phone again. 

**What do you want me to do, Hajime? -Tooru**

**I’m at work right now. And I have to do something after… But I can maybe get free by eight tonight. -Iwa-chan**

**Where? -Tooru**

**Volleyball court? At the park. -Iwa-chan**

**Send me an address. -Tooru**

**I will -Iwa-chan**

***address* -Iwa-chan**

**Have to work now -Iwa-chan**

**K -Tooru**

Work was hard to concentrate on with his head full of thoughts of what he’d say to Oikawa, stomach twisting uncomfortably.

He forced it clear, however, when he drove to pick up his son and take him home; he sat at the table and helped him with his homework as always, and then they made dinner together.

As expected, Hajime was finally free around seven forty five, getting his son to finally pass out in bed. His mother arrived to take over, and he hurried out the door with a text to Oikawa that he was on his way.

**See you in a bit, then. -Tooru**

The brunette was sitting on one of the swings when he arrived, staring at the sandy volleyball court absently. 

Hajime jogged over, sitting down in the empty swing with a huff. 

“Sorry. Took longer than I thought,” he grunted at Oikawa.

Oikawa shrugged. 

“It’s fine, Iwa-chan. You have your own life to tend to.”

He glanced at him briefly but decided not to comment on that yet.

“…” Hajime glanced at Tooru again, taking another breath; he figured he would just say it. He’d always done best putting things bluntly, so… “Tooru.”

“Hajime.”

“I have a son.”

“That’s nice,” Tooru muttered blandly. Then he blinked, a confused frown scrunching his features up unattractively. “…what?” 

“His name is Katashi,” he added quietly, offering his phone to him with a picture of them on his first day of school.

“…Iwa-chan…you…you have a son?” Tooru sounded bewildered. 

Hajime felt his face heat and he struggled not to fall back into his defensive reflex to snap at him. “…Yeah. It…It was an accident and it’s a long story and I…I haven’t told anyone but my mother, Maki, and Mattsun, and I’d rather not share it just yet, but the point is that I have a son and his name is Katashi and…yeah…” he looked at Oikawa finally.

“…Iwa-chan…” Oikawa was looking troubled now, his brows furrowed. “…I wish you’d told me. I could have helped.” 

“I know.” He fiddled with his phone, looking at the picture again. “…But you’re an Olympic volleyball player. You were busy too…And I didn’t want you to drop everything or overburden yourself like you always do…And I was embarrassed, I guess…”

“I ended up helping Akira raise her second child and Takeru after her husband cheated and then walked out. I would have helped you in a heartbeat, Iwa-chan…” He paused. “…I know the situation is embarrassing, but…I wish you would have trusted me with it. I can be discrete, you know.” 

Hajime shifted uncomfortably again and nodded.

“I know, Tooru…” He stood and kicked off his shoes, shuffling through the volleyball court sand. “…I’m sorry I didn’t.”

“…me too.” Tooru shifted on the swing, the chains creaking. “…I’ve been getting more and more depressed. A couple months ago was when it was at its worst…my coaches made me go to a shrink.” 

“…Are you doing any better?” he asked after a moment of silence, looking over at Tooru from the edge of the sand. “…It was too much, wasn’t it? Lost its purpose?” he asked, reading Tooru’s face as easily as ever.

“…yeah…I guess so,” he nodded slowly. “...it gets empty after a while. The thrill fades…” 

“Didn’t think you’d ever get tired of volleyball, as obsessed as you were,” he joked after a moment, kicking the sand. “…Tashi thinks you’re the coolest thing next to sliced bread and Godzilla.”

“…it just…I love the sport, Iwa-chan. I think it’s the competition that’s just…tiring me out. I’m burned out on it, I guess…I miss playing with everyone.”

Hajime watched him for a long moment and then shrugged, kicking the sand, “Guess we need to get the team together for a rematch, then.”

“Funny, Iwa-chan…”

“I’m serious,” he arched his brows, crossing his arms. “I bet we could even play it in our old gym. Coach wouldn’t mind.”

“…it would take a lot of work to set something like that up, don’t you think, Iwa-chan?” Tooru said, though there was interest in his eyes. 

“I’ve got a fantastic baby sitter; same one you had,” he arched his brow, crossing his arms. “And I know for a fact how to get in touch with most of the team. They all go for drinks at Mattsun and Maki’s bar Saturday nights.”

“…maybe. Could be fun,” Tooru mused.

“It will be,” he assured. “I’ll get it set up. We could play against the current team; present versus the past,” he suggested, pocketing his hands. 

“…all right,” Tooru nodded, smiling slightly. “…thanks, Iwa-chan.”

He trotted over and ruffled Tooru’s hair, a little surprised to find no product in the soft strands but deciding not to comment. 

“Yeah, yeah.”

“…so when do I get to meet your son?” 

“You want to?” he asked, mildly surprised; he’d gotten it into his head that Oikawa might not want much to do with Tashi, seeing as all of his attention was on the boy anymore…

“Of course, Iwa-chan!”

Hajime shrugged, “Ah…Well, he doesn’t have school tomorrow, if you’re not busy… Could meet up for lunch if you want.”

“Sure…” He nodded. “Where do you want to meet?”

He pulled up maps on his phone and they found a little place that was healthy enough for Tooru to eat at, but not so much that Katashi wouldn’t like it.

“Alright…” Hajime grunted, pocketing his phone and shifting on his feet. “…I should get home. Kaa-chan is watching my brat…”

“Right. I’ll see you tomorrow, then, Iwa-chan,” Tooru said, smiling slightly. 

“Yeah…” He pulled on his shoes and paused, looking at Tooru again. “…If you need anything, Shittykawa, or just want to talk or something, just call me.”

“Only if you promise to do the same, Iwa-chan,” he replied seriously. 

“I promise,” he nodded, offering his pinkie.

Tooru chuckled but hooked it with his own. 

“See you tomorrow. You got a ride home?” Hajime checked, letting go after a moment.

“Yeah,” he waved off, holding up his keys. 

“Alright. See you,” he inclined his head, jogging over to his rusty pick up and climbing in with a last wave.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think with a comment at the end!  
> Kudos if you enjoyed!


	4. A Brief Meeting

“What are we doing again, Tou-chan?”

“We’re meeting up with a friend of mine for lunch,” Hajime repeated, pulling into the parking lot and coming around to unbuckle Katashi.

“I didn’t know you had friends,” he shrugged, latching onto him like a monkey. 

“I have plenty. Maki-chan, Issei-chan…uh… and others,” he waved off, rolling his eyes at his son as he giggled.

“So is it Maki-chan and Issei-chan?”

“You’ll see,” he hummed, carrying him into the building.

Tooru was seated at a corner table, waiting. He got to his feet when they approached, smiling in greeting. 

“Hey,” Hajime nodded, keeping a firm hold on Katashi as his jaw dropped. “Tooru, this is Katashi-kun. Tashi, this is Oikawa Tooru.”

The boy’s jaw dropped another inch and he stared wide eyed between Oikawa and Hajime. 

“Oh. My. Gosh. You’re Oikawa Tooru!” he squealed once he unfroze, launching himself at the man and hugging him fiercely around the middle. “You’re like the coolest setter ever!” 

Tooru’s smile widened at that. 

“That’s right, I am,” he agreed, ruffling the boy’s hair. “Nice to meet you, Katashi-chan.”

“Tashi, use your inside voice,” Hajime reminded him, ruffling the boy’s hair and sublty attempting to pull him back a bit.

“Oh, sorry Tou-chan! But this-this is just so cool!” 

Oikawa chuckled and gently pried him off. 

“Why don’t we sit down, Tashi-chan?” 

Hajime nudged the boy into his seat, letting him sit next to Tooru because he wanted to so badly. 

“Good surprise, Tash?”

“The best!” He started babbling away to Tooru about volleyball and Hajime and school and whatever else crossed his mind, the setter listening with rapt attention and keeping him talking with ease.

Hajime allowed him get dessert after their meal, figuring he would already be hyped regardless; the boy had his sugar crash about half an hour after eating his dessert, and Hajime gathered him up in his arms to carry out after paying his bill, Tooru getting the doors for him.

“Have a nice day!” the hostess smiled at them happily. “Such a cute family!”

Hajime blinked and felt his face redden, Oikawa looking bemused more than anything and waving to her as he went. 

“Ah, we’re not, uh-”

“Thanks!” Oikawa laughed, dragging Hajime out.

The raven rolled his eyes and grumbled into his snoring kid’s shoulder, starting up the truck after a few turns of the key and buckling him into the back seat.

“He’s a cutie,” Oikawa said, smiling as he watched him sleep. 

“Until he wakes up with all that sugar in him,” Hajime agreed, closing the door as quietly as he could. “…That was nice, Shittykawa. Maybe next time you can come over for dinner.”

“I’d like that,” he nodded. “We should hang out more.”

“Yeah,” Hajime agreed, shifting on his feet. “I need a guys night. I’ll take you to Maki’s bar.”

“Sounds like a plan, Iwa-chan,” he smirked. 

“Don’t start that shit,” he rolled his eyes, smiling briefly. “See you, Shittykawa.”

“Later, Meaniwa-chan,” he replied, heading for his car.

His eyes rolled again and he climbed into the truck.

~

“Why can’t I come, Tou-chan?” 

“Because you’re staying with grandma.”

“I could stay with you!”

“And disappoint Grandma?”

“ _Yeah_.”

Hajime laughed and ruffled his hair roughly, “You’re not 21.”

“So?”

“It means you can’t be where I’m going.”

The boy stared at him for a moment and then gasped; his expression shifted to something sly.

“Oh, _I_  see. Tou-chan’s goin’ to a strip club!”

“Wh-what?! Where did you hear that?! Do you know what that is?” Hajime blinked, stunned.

“Yeah! It’s where the 21-year-olds go to meet pretty ladies!” he explained, that sly grin still in place.

“Ah, well… No, that’s not where I’m going. I’m going to a bar," he frowned deeply, rubbing the back of his head; he didn't like where this conversation was going, and he made a mental note to find out where Katashi was learning about it.

“You’re not s’posed to be drinkin’ lots of alc'hol, ya know. It’s bad for you and makes ya sick and ugly,” the boy informed him seriously. 

“Well I’m already ugly,” he answered, arching his brow at the boy with his lips twitching.

“Tou-chan,” he sighed, laying a hand on his arm gently. “You shouldn’t put yourself down like that. Ya gotta focus on your good points! Like your ability to make Godzilla cakes!”

Hajime sighed, and rubbed his temples, his earts growing hot, “Thanks, brat...I think.”

_You’d think he was Oikawa’s kid…_

“Any time, Tou-chan!” he beamed, rocking on his heels innocently.

There was a moment of silence between them, a very serious stare down ensuing, and then, “...You’re _definitely_ still going to Grandma’s.”

He pouted into his crossed arms the whole trip there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment what you think!  
> Kudos if you enjoyed!  
> Thanks for reading :)
> 
>  
> 
> P.S. who else is avoiding finals/midterms?


	5. A Night Out

Hajime arrived at the same time as Tooru, climbing out of his truck quickly after parking in front of the bar.

“Hey Tooru,” he nodded, meeting him at the door.

“Iwa-chan,” he replied, offering a smile as he followed him in. He looked around a moment before heading to the bar with Hajime. “Nice place.”

“Thanks,” Maki chirped, appearing at his side. “Wondered when you would make time for us, Cap.”

“Ah, I managed to pencil you in,” he chuckled, giving the other man a hug. “It’s been too long. I know you missed me; probably went through withdrawal.”

“Right,” he laughed, hugging him back firmly. “What can I get you to drink? Mattsun is running late,” he added at Hajime, ducking behind the bar.

“Just a beer,” Hajime shrugged, looking at Tooru.

“Scotch and water, but hold the scotch. Anitbiotics,” he explained with a wink.

“Sure thing, Cap,” Maki smiled, grabbing a glass of ice and filling it with water. “I can make ya a virgin drink or something if you want later.” He passed Hajime his beer and just added it to his tab.

“Dazzle me with your bartending abilities, Maki,” Tooru laughed into his glass, taking a sip. 

“You asked for it,” he grinned. 

Hajime led the brunette down to the end of the bar, finding a few old teammates settled around in the chairs; they all stood up to greet Oikawa, hugging him and asking him question after question.

Tooru seemed happy to entertain the questions for the time being, melding back into his old social position surprisingly seamlessly. It was a little different, though, just a tad off from the way he’d once been. His mannerisms tended less toward the shrill whining and shrieking and instead toward quieter rebuffs and amused chuckles, maturity in his lower tones and a sense of comfort with his lanky body lending him confidence. In short, his charismatic pull had grown while the competitive demon he’d once been had sharpened to a fine enough point to be hidden by the new outer persona. 

It was a pretty dangerous development, Hajime soon found out as he switched from beer to water, needing as clear a mind as possible.

Issei was happy to catch up to them as well, insisting on a round of shots that Oikawa got out of by passing his off to Hajime (he drank it only because he was helping Oikawa keep his secret (so he told himself)).

By the time it was getting really late, Hajime had ended up rather tipsy despite himself and their friends had dwindled until it was just he, Oikawa, Mattsun, and Maki. 

“Nostalgic, isn’t it?” Tooru mused as they crowded together at the end of the bar. “Just the four of us against the world…it was nice. I’m sorry I ended up so far away from you all…” 

“You were chasing our dreams; it was great watching you play,” Maki waved off with a grin, pushing another drink at Hajime. 

“Mmhm, but we're glad you came back... Hajime and I went and talked to coach,” Issei added, nodding at the raven. “He said we can maybe do it if we helped with paperwork, set up, and clean up. The students like the idea, but the principal is still touchy.”

“Sounds like we’ll have quite a crowd,” Tooru chuckled. “We’ll have to go easy on the squirts.”

“Tch. I’m not,” Hajime chuckled, knocking back the drink with ease.

“…well. I mean…I’m not really that nice of a person,” Tooru sighed teasingly, eyes sparkling mischievously. “But it’s good to at least make people think you are.”

They all laughed at that.

“Same old Captain.”

“Heh…”

“We’ll have to make it a good game, just ya know,” Hajime waved off airily, pushing his glass at Issei. “We’ll still kick their asses.”

“I think that’s the Daddywa-chan coming out,” Tooru smirked, though his eyes were softer than his tone. “Tashi-chan’s made him a merciful man after all.”

“Have you met that brat?” Issei asked, amused now as he looked at Tooru. “He’s a menace, but one with very strong puppy eyes.”

“He’s adorable and he thinks I’m a god,” Tooru shrugged. “I get along great with the kid.”

“He practically has a shrine,” Hajime muttered around his glass. “Got all the old photos and stuff in a book.”

“I’lll have to wrestle up some old gear for him!”

“We hardly have the room,” Hajime chuckled.

“Besides, I’m pretty sure that boy’s closet is just volleyball merch, and his clothes are stuffed into a dresser,” Maki laughed.

“He knows what he likes. I can respect that,” Tooru put in sagely. “I’m sure you have room for one of my old jerseys, Iwa-chan.”

“I have one,” he waved off again, knocking back another.

“What? You didn’t  _pay_ for one, did you?”

“No,” he rolled his eyes. “You just always left shit at my house.”

“…oh, right…” Tooru smiled faintly into the virgin cocktail Maki had foisted upon him. “…heh, well. We should get him a current one, anyway. Signed, at that.”

“Don’t be winning his favor with gifts,” Issei warned. “He’s a nightmare. Cleans me out of quarters any time he comes by. Had to remove the damn coin machines when he comes around…”

“That’s your own fault,” Maki laughed.

“That’s just pathetic, Issei,” Tooru sighed. “You have the keys to the machines, don’t you? Just let him pick a toy every time.” 

“…”

“…”

“…Pfft,” Hajime sniggered, dying of laughter as he tried really hard not to let it out, his head pressing against the bar.

“You know how much money we could have saved?!” Maki gasped, smacking Issei’s arm. “Damn it, Issei!”

“You have a set too!”

“But he always bugs you, not me!”

Hajime slammed his hand on the counter now, crying with laughter until he was breathless and groaning, holding his gut; he'd always wondered why they hadn't just gotten out their keys.

“Iwa-chan…you really are mean,” Tooru observed, grinning around his glass. 

“Learned from the best,” he wheezed through his laughter, taking the drink Issei handed him again.

Tooru glanced sidelong at Issei but didn’t say anything, letting him have that one in retaliation for the ‘revelation’. 

“Ugh. I should start charging you double,” Maki grumbled at Hajime, his lips still twitching. 

“I thought we were friends,” Issei added.

“We are,” Hajime assured. “But if you’re too stupid to unlock the damn case, I figured I shouldn’t tell you.”

Both of them huffed and grumbled to themselves, shaking their heads. 

“Well said, Iwa-chan,” Tooru said, toasting him playfully. 

They laughed it off again and chatted a while longer, Issei continuing to refill Hajime’s glass until the raven insisted he stop giving him alcohol, swaying in his stool.

“You sure?”

“’m pos’tive,” he nodded largely, rubbing at the back of his head. “’m gotta pee…” He stood and made his way unsteadily to the bathroom.

“I think someone better take Iwa-chan home before he passes out,” Tooru remarked, watching him go with some concern.

“Ah… We would but we gotta lock up and we have a lot of dishes to do…” Issei trailed off, glancing at Maki.

“Yeah. I guess we could drop off his truck in the morning, but…”

“You guys are still as subtle as an elephant in a china shop,” Oikawa stated bluntly.

“You love it.”

“We know you do.”

“Lucky for you.”

“I got his keys,” Issei added, holding up the truck keys with a Godzilla keychain. “Maki, can you grab his spare apartment keys?”

“Sure,” he grinned, bouncing to the back and returning with a bulkier Godzilla keychain.

“Nice,” Oikawa said dryly, rolling his eyes at the keychain and then pocketing the keys. “I’ll take him home when he comes back out.”

Maki gave him the address as well, and then when Hajime shambled back out, he leaned over the bar to hug Issei and Maki and thank them sincerely (and drunkenly) for the night, and then allowed Oikawa to guide him out.

“C’mon, Iwa-chan. Into the car you go,” he said, guiding Hajime down into the passenger seat of his fancy car. “Have fun with the radio.” 

He would regret his decision for the next five minutes as the man fiddled with all of the fancy controls, eventually settling and allowing Oikawa to readjust settings to normal.

It was quiet a moment, and Oikawa thought he fell asleep until he said suddenly, “We do make a cute family.”

Tooru was silent for a moment, processing this, before glancing at Hajime as they stopped at a red light.

“Yeah, that’s true…you, uh…you mean like brothers or…?” 

“No,” he shook his head, looking at Tooru with wide, glazed eyes. 

“…yeah?” Tooru turned back to the road as the light changed, swallowing past his heart, which was suddenly lodged firmly in his throat. “I don’t blame you. I do have a really nice ass.”

“Yeah.” His eyes dropped as though to check, and then he looked up again. “And a nice face…”

“I was blessed with godly good looks, I know,” Tooru nodded, chest squeezing painfully as though to make up for his misplaced heart.

“Yeah.” Hajime reached over and snagged a hand, fiddling with Tooru’s fingers. “…But I like you too.”

“Silly me. Here I was thinking we were talking about me the whole time,” Tooru said wryly. His fingers twined with Hajime’s in spite of himself.

“Well, we were talkin’ about your ass,” he replied bluntly, glancing at him briefly. “I mean I like you…the you…inside the ass too. Because you’re not just an ass.”

Tooru pressed his lips together, caught between laughter and tears. 

“…yeah. The me inside the ass. That’s nice to know,” Tooru finally managed to grit out.

“…I mean, I wouldn’t mind you in my ass,” he nodded, winking horribly at him.

This time Tooru couldn’t help his chuckle. 

“Maybe if you ask me again when you’re sober, Iwa-chan,” Tooru replied. 

“’mm…prob’ly not,” he shook his head sadly, sighing and closing his eyes tiredly; he slept the rest of the way to his apartment.

Oikawa had a little trouble waking him, shaking his shoulder and helping him out of the car, half-asleep.

He followed at his side as Tooru guided him up the stairs to his apartment.

“Tashi’s a great kid… Love him lots…” He finally spoke as they entered his apartment. 

“Me too… I would guess your room is the one that doesn’t have the Godzilla wallpaper, but I don’t want to assume,” Tooru said as they stood in the hall of the apartment. 

He chuckled at that. “I wish… That’s Tashi-chan’s. That one’s mine.” Iwaizumi inclined his head at his room, stumbling along to it and pulling Oikawa with him.

Oikawa helped him to the bed and out of his shoes, and then his belt before straightening away and taking a step back with the intention of leaving to the couch. “I’ll be on the couch if you need me. Gotta make sure you don’t choke on your own vomit or something,” Tooru said, backing toward the door. 

“Wait!”

“What?” he asked, noting the panic in his eyes. 

“Ya gotta leave a light on… My lamp,” he blinked, rolling over and attempting to find the switch frantically.

Tooru hurried over to turn it on before he could break it, shaking his head with nostalgic fondness; when they were little, Tooru had found out that Hajime was terrified of the dark despite his insistence that he  _definitely_ was _not afraid of anything_ , and Tooru had brought over a pack of his favorite glow-in-the-dark stars to litter across the ceiling that night.

“Of course. There…now, if you need me, I’ll be in the living room.”

“Kay,” he sighed, catching Tooru’s hand again.

“Iwa-chan, you gotta let go,” he chuckled, gently tugging at his hand. 

“Tooruuuuu…”

“No, Iwa-chan. Sober-chan will be upset,” Tooru said gently. 

He pouted at him for a moment and then sighed. 

“…I guess…can I have a g’night kiss?”

Tooru blinked and then rolled his eyes, leaning down to peck the top of his spiky head. 

“There.”

He flushed and then let go of his hand to bury into the pillows, practically radiating drunken happiness. Tooru smoothed the blanket over him and then retreated, lips curved into a small smile as he closed the door and made his way to the couch.

It was around four in the morning that he woke up to a thump and heavy steps, and then the creak of a door and a running faucet.

Sighing, Tooru rummaged around in the fridge and the cabinets until he found a can of ginger ale and a glass and then he headed for the bathroom he’d discovered earlier. 

“Iwa-chan,” he called softly. “Can I come in, please?” 

A choked “no” answered him.

“Let me rephrase: I’m coming in but I wanted to be nice because of your ridiculous hangover,” Tooru said as he opened the bathroom door and slipped in, setting the can (already opened to save Hajime the noise) and the glass on the counter. 

He didn’t even bother to grumbled at him, flushing the toilet after a moment and getting to his feet shakily to wash his mouth out in the sink, a hand pressed to his head.

“Where’s your pain medicine, Iwa-chan?” Tooru asked quietly, reaching for the medicine cabinet. 

“Above fridge. Tashi.”

“Figured. That’s why I asked,” Tooru nodded, padding out of the room to retrieve the medicine. 

Hajime was washing his face when Tooru returned, pressing a towel over his cheeks and glancing at Tooru groggily.

“…what’re you doing here?” 

“I couldn’t just leave your drunk self alone,” Tooru shrugged, passing him a couple of pills. “See if you can get those down.”

“Ugh…Shoulda’ left me,” he mumbled, downing the pills with the ginger ale.

“I would never.” Tooru’s tone turned slightly playful. “Besides. Drunk Iwa-chan is adorable.”

He groaned again at that, carrying the glass with him as he shuffled back towards his room.

“…I’m going to hang out in the living room, okay?” Tooru said, lingering in the doorway a tad awkwardly.

“Mm. Netflix. Code 6969.”

“Mmkay. Thanks…try and get some sleep, Iwa-chan.”

“Mmph.”

Another few hours passed before Hajime emerged warily, looking a little worse for wear but better than he had earlier.

“Morning, sleepy head,” Tooru hummed, curled up watching X-Files.

“…Hn… You’re still here,” he rasped, heading to the kitchen for something to drink.

“After care is very important to me, Iwa-chan,” Tooru smirked over the back of the couch.

He blushed down the back of his neck and scowled, returning to the couch with tea for both of them and a box of cereal.

“Glad to see your appetite’s back,” Tooru observed.

“Hm… Hard to get rid of it,” he mumbled, digging a hand into the box and pulling out the toy. “…What did drunk me do?”

“…you don’t want to know.” He smirked teasingly.

“Fuck,” he groaned dropping his head. “…Already have this toy.”

Tooru chuckled quietly but shifted just a little. 

“Mm…if it makes you feel better, you didn’t do anything wild and crazy. Just talked a bit.”

“That’s the worrisome part,” he mumbled, tossing the toy to him. “You have it. I don’t need more to step on…”

“How sweet of you,” Tooru rolled his eyes, holding up the toy. “Patented way to win the affections of any five year old crush.”

“Tch. You’re not that pretty.”

“Iwa-chan!”

Hajime chuckled and glanced at him, his eyes bit a soft. “Thanks for staying, Tooru.”

"Anytime, Iwa-chan," he smiled back examining the toy between his hands; he got up after a moment and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water, pulling a pill bottle from his pocket.

Hajime phone rang and he answered it while watching Tooru, pressing the phone to his ear.

_"Your son wants to come home,_ " his mother chuckled over the line. 

"Mmkay. Do you want me to pick him up?"

" _No, it's alright; I have to get groceries anyways. We'll be over in a bit._ "

"Mmkay. See you soon." He hung up and glanced at Tooru as he wandered back over. "Kaa-chan is dropping off Katashi soon."

"Ah," Tooru nodded, shifting on his feet. "I should get going then?"

"Yeah. I'll see you later," Hajime nodded, standing to walk him out. "...Do you wanna come over for dinner sometime?"

"Sure, Iwa-chan. I'd like that a lot," Tooru smiled at him. 

"I'll text you when I figure something out," he inclined his head, seeing him out the door. 

"See you," Tooru chirped as he stepped into his shoes and headed out down the hall.

Hajime watched him go before he closed the door (Tooru, upon noticing, turned around and blew a kiss at him with a teasing smirk (which Hajime promptly slammed the door on)), shaking his head to himself. "Bakakawa..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment what you think!  
> Kudos if you enjoyed!


	6. Dinner

Naturally, knocking wasn't quite enough for Tooru to announce his presence at five-fifteen the next Wednesday; Iwaizumi was called to the door by a few quick taps and the sound of someone singing, 'Iwa-channnnnn' outside. 

"I got it!" Katashi called excitedly, pulling open the door quickly. "Tooru-san!"

"Tashi-chan! Hello!" Tooru grinned, scooping the boy up to swing him around.

He squealed happily, hanging onto his arms tightly as he laughed, "More!"

"Don't drop him," Hajime suggested, more amused than worried; he closed the door behind them when Tooru stepped out of the way, the boy hanging from his shoulders excitedly.

"Bah, he's not that much bigger than a volleyball. Don't worry, Iwa-chan." 

"Don't go serving him over a net, either."

"Oh! Can we?!" the boy beamed, hugging Tooru happily in greeting.

"I would, but I think your Tou-chan's going to veto that one," Tooru chuckled, ruffling his hair. 

"Fun sucker," he pouted, but bounced back immediately as he dragged Tooru to his room.

"Dinner in ten minutes," Hajime reminded him, wandering into the kitchen to check on the meal.

"I know, Tou-chan! I just wanna show Tooru-chan my new lego set! It's godzilla versus aliens themed!" 

"Sounds amazing, Tashi-chan." 

When the timer went off, Hajime took out the pan from the oven to let it cool, wandering over to check on his son and Tooru; he found them on the floor, Katashi working on putting his lego alien together with Tooru's patient help.

"Hm...I think this piece next, Tashi-chan," Tooru said, pointing to one of the little bits of plastic on the floor. 

"Are you sure? ...You're right! Okay, so it has to be that one next right?" he asked, pointing to a little pile to the left of Tooru. 

"Yup," he smiled, picking up the piece and passing it off to him.

"Do you wanna play with me once we get them built?"

"Of course," Tooru nodded sincerely. "We'll have to get your Tou-chan, too. He makes a good Godzilla. The two of them are actually a lot alike, you know." 

"I know," he giggled, grinning up at him; they both seemed to notice Hajime at the same time. 

"Want to set the table, Tash?" Hajime asked, straightening from the door frame.

"Yeah! I can do it," he nodded, scrambling to his feet and scurrying out of the room. "C'mon, Tooru-chan! I'll show you how to make Gozilla napkins!" 

"Coming," Oikawa chuckled, getting to his feet a bit more slowly.

"Is your knee bothering you?" Hajime asked with Tashi out of earshot, his eyes zeroing in on the appendage.

"I tweaked it at my workout today. It's fine. I had the trainers check it. Just sore," Tooru waved off, making to follow Katashi's path. 

Hajime stopped him, crouching and running his hand over Tooru's knee, feeling for any swelling or damage otherwise and grumbling about how he was so irresponsible with his leg anymore. Tooru flushed a little out of his sight, managing to shake it off before he looked up again. 

"Iwa-chan's such a mother hen. You've gotten even worse than you used to be, Kaa-chan." 

"It comes with being a parent, I'm told," he grumbled, standing up again and making sure that he sat down at the table with an ice pack on his knee while Tashi showed him how to fold the napkins.

"Did you bump your knee, Tooru-chan?" Katashi asked curiously, head tilting at the ice pack. 

Tooru waved a hand airily. 

"Don't worry about it, Tashi-chan. I just worked out a little too hard today." 

"Oh. Tou-chan says you should always be really careful when you exercise so you don't hurt yourself. You must have a bad trainer," he told him seriously, patting his arm. 

"Ah...it's really my fault. I push too hard. I can't help it," Tooru admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "Thanks for the concern, Tashi."

"You shouldn't push so hard," he scolded him, flattening a perfectly folded napkin beside each plate on the table. "Your team really needs you."

Hajime ruffled Katashi's hair and herded him to the kitchen so he could carry over the salad bowl and stop picking at Tooru.

"Dinner looks great, Iwa-chan, even for health food," Tooru remarked, smiling over at Hajime. "I'm going to get you an apron so you can be a proper chef."

"I made one for him," Katashi informed him eagerly, climbing into his seat. "It's got Godzilla on it. But he says he doesn't wanna get it dirty so it's in the closet."

"I wouldn't want to ruin such a masterpiece," Hajime agreed, lips twitching into a smile.

"Ah, I see," Tooru nodded. "Well, I'll have to get him another one so he can keep that one safe."

"Yeah!"

Hajime just chuckled and made up plates for everyone; he had shredded some of the chicken so they could add it to their salad, and smaller bowls littered the table filled with different toppings so they could build their own salads (and appease to Katashi's picky eating).

"I like the salad bar idea, Iwa-chan," Tooru mused as they worked on their salads. "It's cute. Like something out of one of those good housekeeping magazines."

"That's because it is," Katashi giggled, picking up his fork eagerly. "We do pizzas too like this! And sometimes pasta!"

"Really? Does Iwa-chan have a subscription?" Tooru asked teasingly. "I might have to get him one if not."

"We get them from the store sometimes!"

"He likes to pick a magazine on the way out," Hajime elaborated swiftly as heat crawled up the back of his neck.

"Oh yeah? Well, Tashi-chan has good taste," Tooru said, ruffling the boy's hair before settling down with his bowl. 

The boy beamed and babbled about his day so far in between eating, Hajime and Tooru commenting here and there or asking a question. Hajime was struck by a sense of wholeness in the middle of it all, watching as Tashi held open plastic bags and Tooru eased any left over toppings and salad into them, leaving Hajime to handle the rest of clean up at the sink and sort through the longing in his chest for it all the time.

"Wanna watch a movie with us, Tooru-chan?" Katashi asked as they finished cleaning up. 

"When's your bed time?" he questioned, crouching beside him.

Katashi turned wide green eyes on his father, rocking on his heels and folding his hands behind his back, "Tou-chan, we can watch a movie before bed, right?"

Hajime blinked stoically, crossing his arms as he replied carefully, "It is a school night, Katashi..."

"Please? I'll be really good, I promise!"

Tooru glanced between them, looking a bit bemused. 

"Tou-channn..."

"How about I come watch a movie with you this weekend, Katashi-chan?" Tooru offered. 

"You will?" he asked, pouting and hanging onto his leg. 

"Pinky promise," Tooru smiled, offering his little finger to the boy.

"Okay!" he nodded, hugging him after hooking fingers. "Thank you for coming, Tooru-chan!"

"Thank you for having me," the brunette smiled softly, hugging him gently and rubbing his back. "Get some rest for school."

"I will," he nodded, bouncing off after a moment to his room. 

"Thanks," Hajime sighed, rubbing the back of his head as he looked at Tooru.

"It's no trouble, Iwa-chan. He's cute," Tooru shrugged, pocketing his hands. "Thanks for dinner. It was really nice."

"Anytime," he nodded, crossing his arms. "I've gotta get him ready for bed... Do you want to stay a while or...?"

"Hm...if you want to Netflix and chill for a while, I wouldn't be opposed, Iwa-chan," Tooru winked. 

"We can netflix," he rolled his eyes, turning to his son's room. "Go put something on and I'll catch up in a minute."

"Right. See you in a minute, then." Tooru went to sprawl out on the couch. 

Hajime nodded and followed his son to his room, making sure he got into his pjs and then ushered him to the bathroom to brush his teeth. 

"Tou-chan," he complained, picking up the brush grumpily.

"You don't want rotten teeth, do you?" he arched his brow, grabbing his own brush and helping him paste the bristles. 

"No..." he grumbled, starting to brush with him. 

"Besides, the tooth fairy pays better for a healthy tooth," Hajime winked, bumping the boy's hip.

"Yeah?" he arched his brow, peering at Hajime skeptically with white foam around his mouth.

"Yeah," he chuckled, spitting into the sink. "I bought my first volleyball with toothfairy money," he added, ruffling the boy's hair.

"..." He brushed at his teeth more vigorously, leaning on the counter to see his teeth more clearly before washing his mouth and brush in the faucet.

Hajime smiled to himself and shook his head, ushering Katashi back to his room and tucking him in for the night. 

"Sweet dreams, Tash," he sighed, kissing his brow lightly. 

"Night, Tou-chan," he yawned, rolling onto his side and closing his eyes.

Satisfied, Hajime flicked on the little nightlight by the door and then pulled it shut behind him quietly.

"He's cute," Oikawa smiled at him from the couch, his expression soft. 

"Yeah," he sighed, shaking his head as he joined him on the couch. "He's been more of a handful because of it though. It's hard to resist those damn eyes..." 

"Like father like son, huh?" Oikawa winked. 

"Tch, _my_ eyes?" he arched his brow, kicking back into the cushions. "Right... Says the one that went running after just one look," Hajime rolled his eyes, directing his attention to the screen.

"I was running from the beetles, Iwa-chan," Oikawa laughed, his eyes sparkling at him. "That you chased me with."

"Me?" he arched both brows, laying a hand on his chest, "Would I have done that, Bakakawa?"

"Yes," Oikawa said without hesitation. "You were a little brute like that."

Hajime's lips twitched and he laughed, unable to contain his smirk. 

"Yeah...Good times. If you hadn't run around like that, you know, I wouldn't have bothered you," he mused, glancing over at him.

"It was nice having someone who cared enough to bother me," he shrugged. 

"It's nice having someone to chase after."

"Aw, Iwa-chan. We're a match made in heaven," Tooru cooed, voice dripping with saccharine sweetness.

Hajime rolled his eyes again out of habit, elbowing him lightly, "Quit it with that sappy crap. We're missing the movie."

"Hehe. Right," Tooru chuckled, swatting at his elbow. "If you can control those brutish violent urges of yours long enough." 

Hajime used his arm to shove Tooru onto his side in response, eyes locked on the screen.

"Mean!" Tooru squealed, flailing and kicking his legs up onto the couch. 

"Shush." Hajime laid a heavy arm across Tooru's shins, his legs resting across Hajime's lap.

Tooru, somewhat to his surprise, did 'shush', quietening and settling in to watch the movie, staying half draped over Hajime.

_...I suppose some things do change... He's matured somewhat, at the very least..._

The rest of the movie passed in comfortable quiet, coming to an end much too soon for Hajime's taste (although it was nearing early morning hours).

Oikawa yawned hugely, stifling it with a hand. 

"Man, Iwa-chan...it's really getting late. I should get going...only problem is I'm wayyy too comfortable," Tooru whined sleepily. 

Hajime's gaze came to a rest on him, watching his groggy expressions and taking in the fact that he'd splayed out on the cushions, utterly relaxed.

"...You could sleep on the couch if you're too tired to drive," he muttered after a moment, focusing on turning off the movie. 

Oikawa yawned again, pulling the throw blanket further over his side.

"Mmkay...you're the best, Iwa-chan..." he mumbled, eyes already closed. 

"Mm." He sighed quietly to himself, watching Tooru as he drifted off peacefully, his calloused palms sliding down to the brunette's ankle before falling to his side.

_I should get up and get to bed myself..._

Iwaizumi glanced at Tooru again before gently slipping free of him, tucking and smoothing the blanket over him properly. 

"...Night, Tooru," he murmured, pushing a few strands of hair from his lashes before straightening and shuffling to his own room, turning off the lights as he went.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment what you think - we want to know!  
> Kudos if you enjoyed!


	7. Sick

Hajime was the first awake the next morning as usual, stepping into a pair of slippers to save his feet from the chilly hardwood.

"Katashi," Hajime yawned as he poked his head into his son's room, the boy snoring away in a bundle of blankets. "Tash," he called again, gathering a set of clothes for him and walking over to gently shake him awake. "Get up. You know the drill."

"Yes, Tou-chan...Just a minute..."

"Now," he chuckled, pulling him up into a sitting position before ducking back out of his room, flicking the lights on as he exited.

His eyes came to a pause on Oikawa's sleeping form, buried into the blankets and couch.

_...I'll wake him up for breakfast...Looks like he needs the rest._

Nodding to himself, Hajime got to work in the kitchen, frying a few eggs and toasting some bread; he filled a bowl with cereal for his son, adding milk once he settled at the table. 

"Oi, Tooru," Hajime called as he passed the couch, intending to check that Katashi had everything he needed for the day in his bag. "Get up. Breakfast is on the table."

"Five more minutes..." Tooru mumbled into his pillow. 

"Mmhm," he rolled his eyes slightly, setting Katashi's bag by the door with his shoes.

About ten minutes passed and Katashi was bouncing over to the couch, prodding at Tooru eagerly.

"Tooru-chaaaan... I have t' go t' school! Wake up!" 

"Mm...bye, Tashi-chan...do well..." he said sleepily, sitting up, zombielike, and wrapping the boy in a hug. 

He giggled and hugged him back happily, lingering until Hajime called him to the door again. "Bye, Tooru-chan!"

Hajime helped Katashi tie his shoes and then opened the door, sending him off with the neighbor and her own son (a year ahead of Katashi, but going to the same school) with a thank you.

He closed the door when they disappeared down the hall and turned to Tooru, a bit concerned when he saw him curled up again in the cushions; he'd always been an early riser, but perhaps he was just burnt out from volleyball and his medication...

Sighing quietly, Hajime got the plates from the table and set one on the coffee table with a glass of milk.

"Breakfast."

"Breakfast...?" Tooru lifted his head slowly, peering at him through bleary eyes. 

"Yeah. The meal you're supposed to eat every morning?" he arched his brow. He leaned down after a moment, hand covering his forehead and then pressing to his jaw and neck, checking for his temperature; it seemed to be normal at the least, and it wasn't like Tooru had a runny nose or anything.

_He's fine. Probably just tired._

"I-Iwa-chan. What are you doing?" Tooru questioned, seeming confused and weirdly flustered. 

"You're acting weird. I thought you had a fever," he scowled, jerking his hand back and taking a seat on the floor by the coffee table. "Turns out it's just you."

"Hmph...rude..." Tooru muttered, pushing a hand through his mussed hair and then sitting up. "...thanks for breakfast, Iwa-chan."

"Yeah. I have to get to work in an hour," he added, glancing at Tooru briefly before focusing on his meal. "...Sleep alright?"

"Yeah. Thanks for letting me stay," Tooru nodded, moving to the table to eat. 

"No problem," he grunted, turning on the news to watch while they ate.

Oikawa insisted on washing up the dishes for him, and Hajime let him after checking the time, instead ducking into his room to go have a quick shower and get changed.

"If you want to use the shower, be quick," Hajime called to him from his room, towelling his hair dry while another hung around his waist.

"Thanks, Iwa-chan," Tooru chirped, trotting into the bathroom swiftly. He seemed much more awake now that he'd had something to eat and some coffee. 

Hajime relaxed a little and hurriedly threw on his uniform, gathering his wallet, phone, charger and keys from around the house. Tooru emerged several minutes later, his hair damp and looking bright eyed and bushy tailed again. 

"So, off to work, Iwa-chan?" he trilled, flitting around the room collecting his things (somehow, there were a lot of them, and they were everywhere). 

"Yeah. Practice?" he asked him, shouldering his duffle with his fresh laundry (he always kept three sets of gym clothes in his locker at work).

"Yup. I'm a little late, but they won't mind," he replied, pulling on his shoes. "You still keep way too much stuff in your locker, huh?"

"I keep prepared," he countered, his ears hot. "At least I never ran out of clothes like you."

"Like me running out of clothes would be a bad thing," he smirked, winking over at him as he straightened. 

"...I don't need Katashi wanting to run around naked just because you had to," he replied firmly, arching his brow even as the back of his neck warmed.

Oikawa laughed. 

"He'll be fine. He's lived with you for too long not to have picked up your habits," he chuckled. "Have you seen my glasses?"

"He copies your every move in volleyball, though," he sighed, leaning against the door as he waited for Oikawa to realize his sunglasses were already on top of his head.

"That's volleyball, though. And besides, who else should he copy?" he smirked smugly. 

His eyes rolled at that and he crossed his arms, "The point being that he looks up to you a lot... You're getting colder."

Oikawa scowled faintly, looking around fruitlessly. 

"Where are the damn things?" 

"Colder," Hajime told him, a smirk tugging at his lips as Oikawa ran around the apartment, finally throwing up his hands. "Burning up."

"Wh-damn it, Iwa-chan!" he huffed, finding the glasses on his head and shoving them onto his face. 

Hajime grinned and opened the door, "About time. You're going to make me late."

"You coulda just left, Iwa-chan. I can walk myself out," Tooru rolled his eyes. 

"You're sure? Be a shame if you went tumbling down the stairs with that bad knee."

"I'm sure, Iwa-chan. I'm a super graceful volleyball player, after all." 

His eyes rolled again as he followed him down the hall, trotting down the stairs; his hand flashed out and grabbed Tooru by the back of his shirt when his knee gave out on the second flight of stairs.

"Graceful. Right."

Tooru looked rather flushed, angry and embarrassed at once. 

"More graceful than a brute like you, anyway." 

"Idiot," he shook his head, letting go once he was sure he had his footing and then continuing down the stairs. "Let me know when you're free Saturday. You promised Katashi a movie."

"I know. I'll probably be by in the late afternoon, if you don't mind." 

"That's fine. Just text me when you're on your way."

"Sure thing, Iwa-chan," Tooru nodded, flashing a peace sign before settling into his car. 

"Bye," he inclined his head, lifting a hand over his shoulder as he walked to his truck.

Tooru peeled out of the parking lot just to irritate him a moment later. 

~~

**Hey Iwa-chan! Am I still good to visit Saturday? -Oikawa**

**Agh, not this weekend. Sorry. Katashi got a flu from school, so I'd rather not get him too excited, and you don't need to be around germs. -Iwa-chan**

**Oh. You sure? I can wear a mask or something. I'd hate to disappoint him. -Oikawa**

**I really don't want you getting sick. It's a pretty bad bug. Besides, you'd carry the germs to your team and then we would all be in trouble. We can watch one over skype instead maybe? -Iwa-chan**

**That should work, yeah. I'll send you my skype info. -Oikawa**

Iwaizumi carried his laptop to his son's room, setting them up comfortably before giving Oikawa a call over Skype.

"Hi, Iwa-chan, Tashi-chan!" he beamed, waving. 

"Tooru-chan," the boy beamed happily, his voice rough from his cold. 

"Hey Oikawa," Hajime hummed, ruffling Tashi's hair gently. "Ready to watch a movie?"

"Ready when you two are," he nodded. 

Hajime let Katashi browse through Netflix until he found a movie he liked, pressing play with Tooru to begin watching; Hajime's eyes strayed from the screen on occasion, generally coming back to rest on Tooru's face to watch the expressions that flashed over his features.

"That was a great movie choice, Tashi-chan," Tooru smiled as it ended. 

The boy smiled back tiredly, his eyes struggling to stay open, "d'ank you for watching with me..."

"Anytime, Tashi-chan...you better get a nap now, though. Those colds are tough."

"Mmhm..." He yawned and rolled slightly, hiding in Hajime's side and taking no time at all to drift off.

"Poor kid...hope he gets better soon," Tooru sighed.

"He's doing better with the medication they prescribed," Hajime nodded, turning his head to cough into his shoulder. "He'll be alright."

"You better be careful, too," Tooru chided. "I'm not the only one who's reckless with his health sometimes."

"Tch. I never get sick; you know that," he rolled his eyes. "Besides, I'm around little kid germs all the time with this one. My immune system is pretty well built up..."

"Yeah, well, if you keep coughing like that I'll tell your mom," he countered. 

"Don't," he glared slightly, his signature scowl tugging at his lips. "She doesn't need to be around the flu."

"Then you better take care of yourself," Tooru scowled back stubbornly. 

"I've been taking vitamin C, Bakakawa," he rolled his eyes, glancing down at Katashi.

"Vitamin C only works to strengthen your immune system before you get sick. If you've already got the bug, it doesn't do that much," Tooru countered. 

"I'll be fine," he repeated, leaning his head back against the wall behind him. "I should probably let you go. I've got some things to do and I don't want to wake Tash."

"All right...well, be careful, Iwa-chan. If you start getting sick, you better go to the doctor."

"Yup. See you, Tooru," he nodded, scrolling over to the end call button.

"Bye, Iwa-chan. Take care of yourself!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment what you think!  
> Kudos if you enjoyed!  
> Thank you for reading!


	8. Sick Pt. 2

Thursday morning, Hajime woke up feeling like he'd been hit by a train in 103 degree heat, hardly able to bring himself to move.

_Shit..._

He shook his head in hopes to just brush it off, but the movement set his head pounding and dizzy, and had him stumbling into his bathroom to empty his stomach. 

_No, no, no...Gotta...gotta get Tash to school..._

He pushed himself to his feet and washed out his mouth in the sink quickly, trying to figure out what he was going to do; he had to find Katashi a ride to school and get him around for the morning. He figured he could just have his mother pick him up until he remembered that he didn't want her around the flu anyways.

His fingers typed away at his phone while he made his way to Katashi's room, waking him up and making sure he got dressed; he tossed him a cereal bar for breakfast, waiting for replies from friends.

Maki gave no answer, and Mattsun had early work to get to, leaving him with the only option of texting Tooru.

**Are you busy today? -Iwa-chan**

**Just working out. What's up? - Oikawa**

**Wait. -Oikawa**

**I know - Oikawa**

**You got sick didn't you? -Oikawa**

He ground his teeth at the text, hesitating and desperately checking again that he had no other option.

**...Can you take Katashi to school or not? -Iwa-chan**

**Of course I can, Iwa-chan. I'll be over shortly. Text me the address of the school so I know. -Oikawa**

Hajime sighed silently and sent him the address quickly, turning to face Katashi, still sitting at the table and meticulously coloring a blob of green on a piece of scrap paper. 

"Hey, Oikawa is coming over to take you to school today, so make sure you're ready to go when he gets here."

"Tooru-chan is? I gotta get ready," he squeaked, scurrying around rearranging his backpack and shoes. 

"Mmhm..." He turned around and grabbed the medication from the top of his fridge, finding some cold medicine to make do with; anything would be better than nothing.

Tooru arrived an impressively short time later, the man giving Katashi a hug and Hajime a severe look. 

"I'll be back once I've dropped him off," he stated, ruffling Katashi's hair.

"Hmph. Be careful. Car seat is in that closet," Hajime grumbled, waving at Katashi as a goodbye. "Have a good day, Tash."

"Bye, Tou-chan!" 

"See you in a bit, Iwa-chan." 

They disappeared out the door swiftly. 

About forty five minutes later, Tooru was back, barging right in as though he owned the place. His arms were laden with plastic bags, which he set on the kitchen table and started sifting through. 

"Symptoms, Iwa-chan," he demanded, pulling out vegetables and chicken and bottles of stock. 

"Tooru, you're being ridiculous."

"I meant your symptoms."

Hajime rolled his eyes again and winced, rubbing at his head. 

"...Runny nose, cough, pounding head, possible fever."

"Any upset stomach?" he asked, now sifting through boxes of medicines. 

"I vomited this morning," he muttered, running a hand through his hair.

"Hm." Finally seeming to decide on one, Tooru filled a glass with water and brought it over with a couple pills. When Hajime took them from him, he pressed the back of his hand to his forehead, brow creasing unhappily. "You're burning up, Iwa-chan..."

"I'm fine," he replied gruffly, downing the water slowly and setting the glass on the counter. "I need to call in sick, I guess..." he grumbled, turning around to retrieve his phone from the kitchen table and stumbling on his way.

Tooru caught him carefully, retrieving the phone and then herding him back to the couch. 

"Yes, you do. Lay down. I'll get you more water. I brought popsicles, too." 

Five minutes later saw Hajime on the couch, a light blanket over his form and a popsicle in his mouth, a wet rag draped over his forehead and Tooru in the kitchen concocting chicken noodle soup. 

_...How did this happen?_

Hajime sighed quietly and shifted on the cushions, his eyes falling on the TV which was playing some alien documentary that he remembered Tooru was obsessed with.

"...You don't have to do this, Tooru."

"Yes, I do." Tooru continued chopping vegetables. 

Hajime sighed and went silent, finishing the popsicle and tossing the rag aside. Tooru scowled, the sound of the wet fabric hitting the floor drawing him over. He picked up the rag and shook it out before reapplying it firmly. 

"You're still burning up, Iwa-chan. Don't be stupid." 

"I don't like it. It's making my headache worst," he grumbled, squinting up at him.

"Then put it on your neck, you big baby." Tooru crossed his arms.

Hajime stared him down for a long few moments, and then sighed and dropped the rag on his neck, glaring at the television. Tooru sat down after he'd gotten his soup going, settling on the armchair to watch. 

"...I can't believe you still watch this shitty show."

"It's not shitty. You just have bad taste," he sniffed. 

"You're in denial," he replied, going into a coughing fit after he finished his sentence.

"Stupid Iwa-chan," Tooru grumbled, though he looked rather worried; he retrieved a fresh glass of water for Hajime. 

The raven grunted and sipped from the glass, eventually setting it aside and lying down tiredly, setting an alarm on his phone.

Despite his precaution, when he next woke up, Oikawa was shaking his shoulder gently. 

"Iwa-chan. You need to take another dose and I have to go get Tashi-chan."

"Mm...What?" He rubbed at his eyes tiredly, sitting up and groaning as his head pounded viciously. "Right... Just give me the pills... How did you get into my phone?"

"Your password is still 'godzillarox6969'," Tooru shrugged, carefully draping a fresh towel over the back of his neck before passing him a glass of water and the pills. 

"Can't believe you remembered that," he muttered, downing the pills as quickly as possible.

"Well, it is rather memorable," Tooru shrugged, collecting his keys.

"Mm...Thank you," he added quietly, lying back down on the couch.

"No need for that, Iwa-chan," Tooru waved off.

When he came around again next, it was to Tooru murmuring quietly in the kitchen, Katashi's "inside voice" chattering at him on occasion.

"The soup's really good, Tooru-chan," Katashi whispered loudly.

"Thank you, Tashi. Eat up before it gets cold."

Hajime peered over the back of the couch, picking up a tissue absently as his bleary eyes took in the scene; Tooru was sitting with Katashi at the table, each with a bowl of soup and Katashi's homework (actually completed) piled neatly by the empty chair.

Tooru caught him looking when he glanced over at him a second later.

"Iwa-chan's awake," he observed. "How are you doing?"

"..." He blew his nose in response, sitting up properly in the couch. "...'m alright. How was school, Tash?" he asked after a moment, his voice raspy and fading.

"It was fine. Tooru-chan said he's been takin' care of you. I hope you were good for him," he said in a squeaky imitation of Iwaizumi's lecturing tone.

"As good as you are for me," he replied, resting his cheek on the couch. 

"Then ya must have been perfect," the boy beamed, drawing a chuckle from both adults that turned into another coughing fit on Hajime's part.

"Want some soup, Iwa-chan?" OIkawa offered as he carried over a fresh glass of ginger ale, brows creased.

"Sure," he agreed even as his stomach churned, sipping at the ginger ale. 

His eyes followed Tooru as he strode back to the kitchen, Katashi following eagerly to help start washing the dishes with him, Tooru coming back briefly with a bowl for Hajime and then returning once more to the kitchen. 

"Is it any good, Tash?" Hajime asked skeptically, eyeing the broth; it certainly looked alright, but Oikawa always was a better artist than a cook.

"It's super good, Tou-chan. I had two bowls already," the boy nodded energetically. 

Reassured, Hajime sipped at the broth gingerly, surprised to find the flavor quite pleasant.

_Impressive._

He relaxed a little more as he sipped at the broth, his chest warming the more he downed and the longer he listened to Katashi giggling with Tooru at the sink. It was surprisingly wonderful to know that Tooru was back in his life and that his son was as enamored with him as Hajime had been when they were kids, and if there was something else warming his chest, he blamed it on the soup making his fever rise again.

"Make sure you eat slow, Iwa-chan. I don't want it to upset your stomach again," Oikawa instructed, perched on a nearby chair and watching Hajime carefully. 

"Hmph." He glanced at him from the corner of his eye, setting the bowl aside for now, "I'm shocked that it's not bad. But then I can't taste much right now either."

"So rude to the man who's nursing you back to health," Oikawa huffed, turning away to sulk in the direction of the TV.

"It's my natural state," he agreed, lying back with a yawn. 

Katashi trotted into the livingroom shortly with his lego set in hand, spreading out on the carpet to get to work and requesting help from Oikawa or Hajime on occasion; he insisted they watch a movie together before he went to bed, and then Tooru ended up staying a while in his room, telling him bed time stories with the door open.

"...You always were better with kids," Iwaizumi grunted when he came out, the door closing quietly behind him.

"Not always. I just got lots of practice with my sister." 

"Fair," he shrugged, rubbing the back of his head as he shifted on the couch, getting more comfortable; he figured he would just stay where he was for the night.

Oikawa hummed his agreement of Hajime's assessment and then readjusted in the armchair, fiddling with the TV remote. 

"...You're going to stay there?"

"Yup."

Iwaizumi sighed and coughed, rolling onto his side to bury into the couch cushions as he grumbled, "...Pjs are in the bottom dresser drawer."

"Aw. Iwa-chan! So sweet," Tooru chuckled.

"Don't use the good set," he scowled, pulling a sheet over himself.

"So not the gozilla ones. Got it," Tooru laughed, making his way to the bedroom. 

_Tch..._

Hajime just shook his head slightly, falling silent for a while; he heard Tooru return and peered out at him as the TV changed to netflix. 

"Just because you're sick," Tooru said as he pressed play, starting a godzilla movie. 

Iwaizumi rolled over at that, curled up comfortably as his eyes fixed on the screen, "'s a good one."

"Mmhm. Of course it is, Iwa-chan." 

Hajime had to take his medication again in the middle of the movie, the night time version knocking him out before the movie could end, Tooru still perched in the arm chair.

He woke up feverish and shaky, Tooru worriedly hovering over him and pressing a cool rag to his forehead. 

"Tooru?" he mumbled, coughing and groaning as a wave a nausea washed over him.

"Iwa-chan," he replied worriedly. "Your fever is really spiking..." 

Hajime forced himself up and then bent over the nearest trash can, emptying his stomach entirely with painful heaves, struggling to catch his breath.

"Okay...Iwa-chan, I'm going to take you to the doctor." 

Hajime was too miserable to argue, wiping his mouth on a rag and trying to make himself stop shivering as he mumbled, "Yeah."

Tooru slipped out the door for a moment, returning with the neighbor, to whom he'd explained the situation; the man went to wake Katashi, leaving Tooru to gather Hajime together and herd him out the door with a fresh bucket in hand. 

"I can walk," Hajime growled sharply at him as Tooru's hands supported him down the stairs, his body shivering violently and his head pounding.

"You're going to hurt yourself," Tooru argued, staying as close as he could. 

He bickered senselessly with Tooru all the way to his car, collapsing into the front seat and pressing his forehead to the cool window, finally going quiet again. It seemed like no time at all had passed when Tooru came around to open his door for him, helping him out of the car. 

"Come on, Iwa-chan. Almost there." 

"'m sorry," he mumbled, letting Tooru help him into the building. 

"No need, Iwa-chan. Let's just get you taken care of," Tooru replied, getting him into a chair in the waiting room and then going to the desk to check in. 

They spent three long hours in the building, an hour and a half wait for a doctor to see them, and then another hour for tests and a half hour to fill out the paperwork to leave.

It was morning by the time they returned to the apartment, both of them exhausted. Hajime was incredibly drowsy from the medicine, making Tooru's attempts to get him into bed even harder than they should have been. 

"No...'m not tired..." he insisted, grabbing onto him firmly and refusing to let go.

"Yes you are, Iwa-chan. Just go to sleep," Tooru coaxed, attempting to pry him off to get him to sleep. 

"No..." he groaned, pressing his face into Tooru's shoulder. 

"Yes, Iwa-chan," he insisted, sighing and laying down with him. "Come on. Sleep."

He sighed gruffly and settled against his chest, curling up as close as possible, "Mm..."

"Good...nighty night, Iwa-chan," Tooru sighed, his hand running through Hajime's hair gently. 

The raven relaxed steadily against him and drifted off, his fingers fisted into Tooru's shirt.

~

It took Hajime a while to wake up fully, still drowsy from his medication and too comfortable to bother trying to get up; when he realized that his pillow wasn't actually a pillow, however, he shot into a sitting position.

Tooru startled awake at the sudden movement, rubbing at his eyes and whining. 

"Iwa-chan...you're awake," he muttered. "Are you feeling better?"

"Get out of the bed, you idiot," he scowled, grabbing a handful of tissues as he started coughing and his head spun sickeningly. "You're going to get sick."

"You wouldn't let me," Tooru rolled his eyes, sitting up. "It's time for more medicine for you. I'll be right back. You want anything else?"

"Drink," he huffed, wiping his mouth with the tissue before tossing it into the trash can; he did feel admittedly a bit better. Not great, but better.

"You must be feeling better...rude again," Tooru grumbled, striding out of the room. He returned a moment later with a glass of ginger ale and a bottle of pills. 

Hajime downed them shortly, wincing at the grimy feeling in his throat and sitting back against the headboard tiredly.

_Damn...How can I still be tired?_

"The doctor's said you need to get lots of rest, Iwa-chan," Tooru said. "You also need to drink lots of water."

"Mm...If that's all, then you should probably get home," he muttered, cracking open an eye at Tooru. "Don't miss more practice on my account."

Tooru didn't budge. 

"They don't mind. And I can work out from here anyways."

"It won't do you good if you get sick," he scowled, closing his eye again.

"Well, it's too late now anyway. One more day won't make that much difference."

"Go take a shower," he snapped back, rubbing at his head. 

"Maybe I will," Tooru huffed. "And I'll use up all your hot water, too." 

"Go ahead," he grumbled, curling up around a pillow; he heard the bathroom door shut shortly, his back relaxing just a bit.

_...I already feel guilty enough asking him to take Katashi to school, and then on top of that he picked him up, made dinner, stayed, took me to the ER... I can't get him sick..._

Tooru emerged nearly half an hour later, his hair damp and smelling of Hajime's shampoo strongly enough that even his blocked nose could detect the scent. 

"You don't have any conditioner, Iwa-chan. No wonder your hair sticks up like a bristle brush."

"Conditioner is expensive," he rolled his eyes, his voice muffled by the pillow and his blocked nose. "Before you go rummaging around, there's a couple old shirts and shorts in the top drawer."

"I'm gonna buy you some conditioner," Tooru muttered, reaching into the said drawer and pulling out a set of clothes. He dropped his towel, much to Hajime's redness, pulling on the clothes swiftly. 

"Tch." He pulled his pillow over his head, letting out a long breath.

"And some moisturizing body wash. You're gonna end up looking like some kind of wrinkly old potato when you're older."

"Don't need to moisturize." He sulked slightly, his eyes closing again in hopes that he'd fall back asleep.

"Everyone needs to moisturize." Tooru flopped onto the far side of his bed. 

Iwaizumi simply chose not to answer, curling up tighter in the blankets. 

Tooru remained quiet for a while, and then the sound of one of his silly shows started coming from his phone. 

"...You can turn on the TV, Bakakawa..." he mumbled after a few minutes, resettling on the pillows properly.

"I didn't want to wake you up, Iwa-chan..." He shifted. "But if you're sure..." 

He closed his eyes in response, relaxing as the show began playing quietly on the screen and drifting off to the stupid, overly dramatic tone of the narrator. 

Katashi coming home from school woke him up again, the boy carefully ducking into the room with Tooru to check on Hajime. 

"Hey buddy," he muttered, lifting a hand to his eyes as he sat up. "How was school?"

"It was okay. Are you okay, Tou-chan? Tooru-chan said he had to take you to the doctor this morning," he said worriedly, climbing onto the bed to give him a hug. 

"I'm fine," he waved off, pulling him into his chest and rubbing a hand over his back, relaxing a little. "You know me."

"Yeah...you're not good at taking your medicine. Baa-chan says so," the boy replied, holding onto him tight. 

"Mah," he brushed off again, ruffling the boy's hair. "I'm tough enough that I don't usually need it."

"Baa-chan says that's not how it works," he mumbled, still clinging. "Can I do my homework in here?" 

"Of course. But you have to work at the desk, alright?" he compromised, nudging the top of his head. "Sorry I worried you, kiddo."

"Just don't do it again, okay?" he pouted, slipping off the bed again to go get his homework and set it on the desk. 

"I'll do my best," he hummed, lying back down with a small coughing fit into the crease of his arm. 

Once the boy had finished his homework, he climbed up onto the bed between Hajime and Tooru, settling under the covers to watch TV with them. 

"You pick," Hajime told him when the latest episode ended, handing him the remote and settling with an arm over his shoulders loosely.

"Okay! Let's watch Puppy Patrol!" he said eagerly, changing the show swiftly. 

Hajime's lips twitched and he nodded, turning his eyes to the screen to begin a very serious session of puppy patrol, discussing the episode with Katashi as it played. Tooru chimed in when Katashi asked him what he thought of the episode's plot. 

"They certainly seem like brave little puppies." 

"They're awesome, Tooru-chan! Tou-chan said I could dress up like one for Halloween!"

"Really? We should all be one, so we have the whole squad," Tooru suggested, smiling and ruffling the boy's hair. 

"Huh! Tou-chan, can we  _please_?!" He turned wide puppy-eyes on his father, glinting excitedly.

"Sure, Tash," he mused, settling back into the pillows tiredly. "Sounds like a good idea."

"Awesome!" he beamed. "This is gonna be the best Halloween ever!" 

Hajime smiled and glanced at Tooru briefly, his eyes a bit grateful that he'd cheered Katashi up. Tooru merely smiled back at him over the boy's head, ruffling his hair gently. 

Katashi dragged Tooru to the kitchen shortly after, insisting they make spaghetti for dinner and claiming it was Hajime's favorite (it was Katashi's, but Hajime didn't mind). The boy returned with sauce on his cheeks and a grin on his lips, holding a spoonful of the concoction for Hajime to taste. 

"Watcha think, Tou-chan?" 

He tasted the spoonful and hummed thoughtfully, "Well... I'd say it's some of the best you've made, Chef."

"Really?" Katashi beamed. "Good! I wanted to make it extra special so it would make you feel better."

"I feel better already; why don't you go finish cooking and then we can all eat in bed?" he suggested, ruffling Katashi's hair.

"Okay!" he gasped, charging off; he could hear him loudly informing Tooru of their accomplishment and directing him to keep working on the sauce so it didn't burn. 

His lips stayed curved just slightly as he listened to them, sipping from his glass a bit more. Tooru carried in plates for them both a little while later, looking highly amused as Katashi carried the cheese.

"Thanks guys," Hajime hummed, settling with the plate in his lap and letting Katashi very particularly pour cheese on top.  

"You're welcome, Tou-chan," the boy replied, rocking on his heels expectantly as he waited for Hajime to taste. 

He twirled a forkful of noodles and took a bite, his expression stoic so as not to give anything away.

"...Well?" Katashi asked impatiently, eyes bright.

"It's delicious, Tash; good job," he complimented, ruffling his hair. 

"Thanks, Tou-chan!" he beamed, chest puffing out like a proud rooster. "I made it special for you."

He chuckled softly as he took another bite, Katashi settling between them once more; Hajime couldn't finish his plate yet, worried about upsetting his stomach.

"It's okay, Tou-chan. Bein' sick makes ya not hungry like normal," Katashi explained to him helpfully as he tottered out of the room with Hajime's plate, Tooru striding behind him with a bemused look. 

Hajime just shook his head, lying down with his smile still in place; he was warm and tired again, and he wanted to just go ahead and take another nap. Tooru returned in time to smoothe his blankets out over top of him gently before he could fall asleep, settling with Katashi on the far side of the bed once more. 

Iwaizumi reached out a hand and wrapped his fingers around Katashi's, relaxing against the pillows and drifting off easily knowing that Tooru would take care of him.

Tooru insisted on staying through the next day, Hajime weak and tired but on the mend. This pleased Katashi greatly, and Hajime enjoyed it more than he'd ever be willing to let on as well. 

"I'm going to take a shower," Hajime muttered gruffly as he got to his feet around noon, Katashi playing legos with Tooru on the end of the bed.

"Good. Be careful and don't take it too hot just yet. We don't want your fever coming back," Tooru hummed, helping Katashi arrange his little lego figures. 

"Mmhm," he rolled his eyes, shuffling into the bathroom and closing the door behind him; he intended to take a quick shower, but it turned into a much longer one when he realized how nice it felt to stand under the spray.

He finally emerged with a towel around his waist, searching his dresser for a pair of boxers and sweats.

Tooru wolf whistled teasingly from the bed; Katashi was nowhere in sight at the moment, thankfully. 

"Looks like Iwa-chan definitely still works out too much."

His face heated slightly and he flipped Tooru off, pulling on his boxers beneath the towel as he grumbled, "Shut up, Bakakawa. Of course I'm in shape; I'm a trainer."

"Gotta set a good example, huh?" Tooru teased. 

"It's hardly fair to yell at someone to get into shape if you're not in shape yourself," he huffed, dropping the towel and pulling on his sweats. "I know you're jealous but do try to contain yourself."

"Haha, Iwa-chan," Tooru rolled his eyes. "You're right, though. It's good not to be hypocritical."

He grunted again in response, returning to the bed and settling once more, his damp hair sticking in all directions. Tooru sighed and reached over, combing his fingers through Hajime's hair to tame it somewhat. 

"There...at least it's all going the same direction now."

Hajime arched his brow at him and lifted a hand to muss through his hair, just to irritate him.

"Hey!" Tooru swatted at him and pouted, cheeks puffing up and arms crossing as he turned away from Hajime. "That's the thanks I get for helping you?" 

"You were helping yourself," he shrugged, settling against the pillows.

"How was I helping myself?" Tooru demanded, huffing. 

"By touching my hair and styling it like you used to."

"I still think that's helping you more than helping me," Tooru argued. 

He just rolled his eyes again in response, stretching out on top of the covers comfortably. "Where did Tash go?"

"He's taking a nap. He was up late last night, despite my best efforts to get him to sleep. He was worried about you," Tooru explained. 

"Ah..." he sighed quietly, feeling guilt twist his stomach. "...Well just let him sleep, I suppose..."

"Don't feel bad, Iwa-chan. He's your son...he can't help caring too much about the people he loves," Tooru said quietly. 

"He shouldn't have to worry about me for a long time," Hajime replied, an arm resting over his eyes. "I'm supposed to worry about him."

"Everyone gets sick sometimes, Hajime. It's not your fault. It just happens."

"I can't actually remember the last time I was sick," he mused after a few moments, tucking his arm beneath his head and glancing at Tooru.

"I remember the time you got pneumonia when we were kids," Tooru said, glancing over at him in turn. "I was worried sick." 

"It was a pretty bad case," he admitted, glancing at the TV again to avoid his gaze. "But I was fine."

"It took a while, though...good thing it was in the off season," Tooru mused. "...I was just glad you were all right..." 

"You worry too much," Hajime informed him, picking up the remote.

"No, you worry too much," Tooru waved off. "You're the mother hen."

He rolled his eyes again at that but let it be, because there was truth in the statement.

"Uh-huh. I'm right, you're wrong." He blew a raspberry at Hajime. 

"You're also two," he chuckled, hitting him with a pillow.

"I'm young at heart. Nothing wrong with that. Better than crotchety old men like Iwa-chan."

"You force me to act older," he grunted, replacing the pillow behind his head.

"I don't force you to do anything," Tooru scoffed. "I'd fear the man who could do that."

"...Yeah," he shrugged, glancing at him with an amused smirk.

"Everyone knows you're stubborn as an ox," Tooru agreed. "Thick as one, too," he added teasingly.

"Thicker," he corrected, looking up as Katashi came shuffling through the door, eyes red-rimmed. "Hey Tash. Bad dream?" the raven asked, sitting up quickly and reaching over to lift him onto the bed.

"Yeah..." he mumbled, latching onto Hajime's side and burying his face in his chest. "Scawy..."

"Aw, come on now; it couldn't have been scarier than me," he teased lightly, cradling him close to his chest and leaning over him slightly, curled around him in a protective manner. "Wanna tell me about it?"

"No. Just scawy..." he muttered, cuddling closer and curling into a ball against his chest. "...just don't go anywhere, okay, Tou-chan?"

Hajime let out a soft huff, tightening his arms around Katashi briefly, "I could never leave you, Katashi. I'll always be here."

"Pwomise?" The boy uncurled enough to peer up at him through wide, watery eyes. 

"Promise," he nodded, kissing his brow briefly. He readjusted to lean back against the headboard, pulling the blankets up around Katashi to be more comfortable.

"You guys are so cute I'm gonna cry," Tooru muttered once the boy had drifted off again, too exhausted to stay awake much longer. 

Hajime's face heated and he rolled his eyes, muttering back gruffly, "Yeah, whatever... Put on something interesting to watch." He shifted again, his shoulder pressing against Tooru's.

"Heh...yeah, sure, bossy-wa-chan." He fiddled with the remote until he settled on something to watch. 

Sunday morning came around eventually and it was time for Tooru to leave, Hajime having nearly fully recovered and Katashi bouncing around the house, trying to be helpful. 

"All right...well, I think I've got all my stuff. I'll know where to find it if I need it anyways," he said, hoisting his bag onto his shoulder. 

"Do you really have to go?" Katashi whined, hanging off of Tooru's hip with a pout. 

"I do," Tooru nodded, ruffling his hair. "Sorry, twerp. I've gotta get back to my house. Make sure it's still there and all that."

"Can I come with you?" he asked, pouting a bit heavier.

"Not this time," he chuckled, ruffling Katashi's hair. "But maybe one time for dinner, mm?"

"Yeah! Can we Tou-chan?"

Hajime smiled slightly and nodded, arms crossed as he leaned against the kitchen table, "Sure, Tash. Sounds like fun."

"Awesome!" Katashi squeaked happily, bouncing around Tooru in a circle a couple times. 

"I'll text you when," Oikawa smiled, hugging Katashi firmly before releasing him again to run around the apartment. 

"Sounds good... Thanks, Tooru," Hajime nodded again, running a hand through his hair.

"Anytime, Iwa-chan. You know that," Tooru replied, his face softening slightly. 

Hajime smiled slightly and inclined his head. "See you soon, then."

"See you, Iwa-chan," he winked, flashing a peace sign before slipping out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment what you think, Kudos if you enjoyed!
> 
> I wanted to break this chapter up more, but I couldn't decide where it would be best to, so I decided to just make it one huge chapter.  
> I posted a few times today to try and make up for not posting yesterday- finals kicked my butt ^.^'


	9. Chapter 9

**So guess what -Iwa-chan**

**What? -Tooru**

**That's not a proper guess -Iwa-chan**

**Aliens have contacted you in regards to my abduction? -Tooru**

**I wish -Iwa-chan**

**Mean! -Tooru**

**Heh. No; it's even better -Iwa-chan**

**Coach and I set up the game we were talking about. It's going to be in three weeks after school -Iwa-chan**

**Wh-Tooru**

***incoming call***

"Hello?" Hajime asked, pulling the phone from his ear in preparation.

_"Iwa-chan! Are you serious?!"_

"I'm always serious," he replied, his lips curving. "And all the guys are happy to come around to practice for the match."

_"Wow...Iwa-chan..."_ Tooru trailed off for a moment. _"...thank you..."_

"It's nothing, Tooru. You're not the only one excited for it," he smiled, his tone a bit gentler than usual. "Of course, most of us live in apartments, so we're going to need a yard to practice in..."

_"I just happen to have exactly the place,"_ he replied. 

"I was hoping you'd say that."

"Tou-chan! Who's on the phone?!" Katashi demanded curiously from the couch, peering over the back of it with narrowed eyes; it had been a week since he'd had his Tooru fix.

_"Is that Tashi-chan I hear?"_

"Is that Tooru-chan?" Katashi demanded suspiciously. 

"Yes," he replied to both at once, chuckling as Katashi flew over the couch and ran over eagerly. "Would you like to say hi?"

"Yeah!" he nodded, reaching for the phone; he and Tooru ended up having a long conversation, Katashi wandering around the house for nearly an hour as he chattered away at Tooru. 

"Tell Tooru that he can text me later about what days are good for volleyball practice," Hajime hummed at him eventually, setting two bowls of mac'n'cheese on the table.

"Okay," he said, relaying the message. "...and Tou-chan has my mac ready, so we can talk more later, okay? Okay. Bye, Tooru-chan!" 

He hung up and handed the phone back to Hajime, digging into his meal happily. 

"Glad you enjoyed talking with him," Hajime mused, ruffling Katashi's hair.

"I wanna go see him again soon. He's fun," Katashi replied, smiling up at him.

"Yeah? Well, if we end up practicing volleyball we'll end up over at his a lot."

"Huh! We get to play volleyball with him?" Katashi gaped at him, orange stained cheeks pulled back. 

"Uh-huh. We're getting our team together from highschool and we're going to play a match in our old gym," he explained, offering a napkin amusedly.

"Wow! That's awesome, Tou-chan!" 

"Which also means you'll have to finish your plate tonight; gotta get those calories to burn, right?" he added, taking another bite of the meal.

"Yeah!" he nodded, starting to dig into his food with new gusto. 

Hajime smiled triumphantly to himself, watching Katashi finish the meal entirely; whenever Tooru was mentioned or around, the boy seemed to eat much more healthily, an issue he'd struggled with.

They washed up from the meal together after, and then Hajime crawled into bed with him to watch some movies until he fell asleep.

-

The Oikawa estate was absolutely everything Hajime assumed it would be; the outside of the manner was painted in tasteful blues and whites, surround by a very green yard littered with flowers and decorative statues- and in the back, next to his own volleyball court, was a deep and long pool paired with a marbled hot tub, which were great for the team to jump into after practice. 

The inside was two stories, decorated stylishly but cozily, the interior warm and the furniture ridiculously comfortable; it was obvious he hadn't decorated it himself, the colors matching too well (excepting his "man cave," of course; he definitely designed that on his own, with the ugly green walls and plaid couches, and the alien paraphernalia mixed in with volleyball equipment).

Katashi was absolutely stunned the first time he tagged along, clinging to Hajime's side shyly at the sheer size and expensive look of the mansion.

"It's alright, Tash; it's just Oikawa's house," Hajime hummed, ruffling his hair gently as he started around the side to the back yard.

"House?" he asked, eyes wide. "I thought it was a hotel!"

Hajime chuckled softly, though he privately agreed. 

"I know. You can tell it belongs to Sillykawa. Suits his tastes."

"Who're you calling Sillykawa?" 

"You, Bakakawa," he replied, arching his brow at the brunette as they wandered over to the court, Katashi still clinging to Hajime's waist, though his grip loosened at the sight of Tooru, and then he held on tighter as he saw the rest of the team, most of them unfamiliar.

"Brattywa," Tooru huffed, sticking his tongue out at Hajime before crouching down by Katashi. "Hi, Tashi-chan. How ya doing?" 

"'M good," he mumbled, looking around again before looking at Tooru again. "You live in a reaaallly big house, Tooru-chan..."

"Yeah...you guys should come over more often," Tooru chirped, ruffling his hair. "You wanna meet the team?"

"They're the old team, right?" he asked, blushing slightly as they paused practicing receives to look over at them. 

"Mmhm; we played with these guys in highschool," Hajime confirmed, prying him off of his leg and lifting him up to balance on his hip. "Guys, this is Katashi."

"Hey, Tashi-chan," Hanamaki greeted casually, waving a hand. Issei waved from over his shoulder as well. 

"Hi Maki-jii-chan, Mat-jii-chan," he nodded back, offering a shy smile as he looked at the others, introducing themselves with friendly smiles.

"You ready to play some volleyball, kiddo?" Hajime asked him after a bit, bouncing him slightly and making him giggle.

"No!"

"No?" he asked, brow arching.

"We haven't stretched yet!" he answered seriously, crossing his arms firmly.

"Stretching is important," Tooru agreed with a wink at Hajime over the top of the boy's head. 

"Otherwise you get hurt," he agreed, rolling his eyes at Tooru as they settled in the grass to get to work, Katashi following Hajime's examples to the best of his ability.

Tooru plopped down next to them to join the stretching, his lips twitching with amusement. 

"Think you can get the ball over a net that high, Tashi-chan?" Hanamaki asked as the boy joined them on the court, volleyball in hand. 

"Sure he can," Hajime snorted, the boy grinning up at him cheekily.

"Guess we'll find out," he nodded back, laughing lightly as he tossed it back to Matsukawa to serve.

"Get ready, Tashi-chan," Tooru whispered, moving to the center of the court. 

The boy nodded slightly, settling into a ready stance in case the ball came at him; Hajime received the serve neatly, bumping it practically into Tooru's hands.

Tooru tossed it right to Katashi, who jumped and smacked the ball in a neat arc over the top of the net. It wasn't exactly a spike, but it was about all the kid could manage. 

Thankfully, it was also a very short arc that stropped the ball just on the other side of the net, where no one could dive to save it in time. 

"Nice, Tashi," Hajime laughed, high-fiving his excited son.

"Good job," Tooru smirked, ruffling his hair smugly.

He beamed at them widely and then settled again for the next round, eyes sparkling.

They played two sets with the boy before he sat aside to take a break, not used to playing with adults and such high nets; he ended up running water to them from the cooler and instructing people on their receives and spikes, much to everyone's fond amusement.

"Ready to stop for the evening, coach?" Oikawa asked the boy eventually, plopping onto the grass beside him. "The pool is probably perfect right now."

"How deep is it?" he asked skeptically, though he did get excited at the idea of swimming- Hajime had taken him on occasion to the public pool.

"Deep at one end, shallow at the other," Tooru explained. "The shallow end should be right about your size."

"Can I go swimming, Tou-chan?" he asked, looking to his father with wide eyes.

"Just wait for me to get in with you," he nodded, wiping the sweat off his face with a towel; he'd just been wearing his swimming trunks to Tooru's anyways. "I'll find you swimming bottoms and you can change in Tooru's bathroom."

"Awesome, Tou-chan!"

They spent a good two hours in the water, their fingertips wrinkly by the time they climbed out; Hajime bundled Katashi in a thick beach towel and left him with Hanakmai and Mattsun to help Oikawa grill some burgers and hotdogs, leaning against the bar comfortably.

"I think he's had a lot of fun," he muttered at Tooru, glancing back at the grinning boy.

"I'm glad," Tooru replied, smiling slightly. "He's a good kid. You both deserve a break sometimes."

"Mah...It's good for him," he allowed, mussing his hair absently. "He thought your house was a hotel," he added, lips twitching.

"Yeah? I suppose it is kind of big," he mused, glancing at the house. 

"It's a little much for one person."

"I guess..." he agreed, trailing off a moment. Oikawa perked up suddenly and glanced over at him, "You should move in. It's not like I haven't got the room, ya know."

"What?" Hajime laughed, rolling his eyes at the idea. "Tooru, don't be ridiculous."

"I'm not being ridiculous. It makes sense," Tooru pointed out. "I have tons of room and you don't need to really pay me rent, either."

Iwaizumi rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably at the idea; it wasn't that he didn't like being around Tooru, it was just... That was a lot to offer someone, even to good friends. 

"...I'll think about it, maybe, Bakakawa."

"Good," Tooru hummed, turning back to the grill and poking at the burgers on it. 

Hajime took over before they could be overcooked, making up a plate for Katashi and himself before settling at the table with the rest of the guys.

Once they'd finished the meal, Hajime sent Katashi to go change, his eye lids drooping tiredly as he waddled into the outdoor restroom.

"I think I'm going to head home after this; Tash is pretty tired out," Hajime remarked at Oikawa and Issei, leaning back in his chair and tucking his arms behind his head. "And I've got to go into work for someone."

"Aa... Got a babysitter set up for Katashi?" Maki asked, tilting his head.

"I'm taking him with me to work in the morning, and then Kaa-chan is coming by to pick him up for lunch," he nodded back, shrugging again, "He likes the gym."

"I could watch him if you needed, Iwa-chan," Tooru offered, nudging his side. "I don't do much other than train, ya know."

"I'll keep it in mind," he shrugged, rubbing the back of his head; to be fair, Tooru had taken very good care of him when Hajime had gotten sick, and Katashi simply adored him.

Upon Katashi's return, Hajime gathered up his bag and hoisted his son on his hip, nodding at the group in goodbye with a promise of seeing them next practice.

"Bye everyone," Katashi yawned, waving his hand and grabbing onto Tooru's sleeve. "Thank you, Tooru-chan! Can I come back again?"

"Definitely, Tashi-chan; what would we do without our head coach?" he smiled back fondly, ruffingly the boy's hair. 

~ 

For the next few weeks, their team got together at Oikawa's mansion, practicing for a couple hours, usually having dinner with him, and then heading out again; Hajime hadn't seen Tooru look so happy and relaxed since they were back in school, and it warmed his chest in a pleasant way.

The day of the match seemed to creep up on them almost too quickly, most of the team carpooling to the school gym.

Hajime ended up bringing Katashi along, the boy having begged and pleaded with him for an entire week before he gave in; missing just a bit of school wouldn't hurt him too much, after all.

"Yay! Go Tou-chan!" he cheered from the bench, practically vibrating on his seat.

Hajime chuckled and ruffled his hair before joining the rest of the team for their warm up, Tooru setting a couple balls for them to practice spiking down. 

"They're good, too," Hajime muttered when they moved off the court to let the school's current team practice, watching them closely.

"That'll just make it more fun to crush them," Tooru chirped at his shoulder, flinging an arm around him happily.

"Heh... Your knee alright?" he checked, glancing at his leg.

"Better than ever, Iwa-chan," he winked, extending his leg gracefully.

"Good. Don't screw it up in the match," he answered, slapping him on the back bracingly as the ref blew a whistle.

The brunette waved off the warning and gathered the team together, giving one of his pep talks that got the older men riled up to take their places on the court.

The match itself was long and brutal, keeping within fair distance of each others scores, losing and winning some; despite Tooru and Hajime's relative levels of skill and fitness, few of their teammates had kept up with the sport, becoming distracted with their own careers and families. Furthermore, they were trying not to completely destroy the other team (or at least, Hajime was; Tooru seemed to have no qualms with crushing the teenagers and their dreams). The last set was the closest yet, with it being the older team's match point.

"Damn... These kids don't seem to ever run out of energy," Hanamaki whined, panting and wiping his brow. "Make this quick, Tooru."

"I'll do my best," he smirked, spinning the ball in his hands confidently; he ran into his famous jump serve, sending it flying powerfully at the other side and-

One of the members managed to receive it, the ball shooting into the air as a second set it for a spike.

Thankfully they managed to block it, the ball bouncing off of a hand and flying into the air, Issei diving and managing to knock it to Tooru.

"Me!" Hajime called, running up to the empty line in front of the net; the members closed in on him, jumping for a block as the volleyball fell into position, a spot opening in Hajime's vision.

Shocking them all, his left hand shot up and slammed the ball down through the opening, bouncing hard off of the floor.

It went silent in the gym, the only sound that of the ball bouncing away toward the wall. Then Tooru looked over at Hajime and grinned. 

"And that, ladies and gentlemen, is a true ace," he announced smugly, slapping him on the backside. 

He laughed at that, the silence breaking as their team cheered.

They shook the players' hands and then settled on one side of the court, chatting with the new players and their past coach for a bit and pausing to pose for a photo, Katashi perching proudly on Hajime's shoulders.

"Since when could you spike with your left?" Maki demanded, giving the raven a good, excited shove. 

"It's something I picked up," he replied, smiling slightly and dodging another slap from Tooru.

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Well I didn't think I'd use it," he shrugged back, readjusting Katashi on his shoulders.

"Tou-chan taught me to do it, too!" the boy beamed brightly, making a spiking motion in the air. "I can do both!"

"Yeah? That's awesome, Tashi-chan. We'll have to practice it together," Tooru said enthusiastically. 

"Yeah!"

Hajime laughed again and readjusted his hold on the boy, leading the way out to the parking lot.

"So, dinner at the hibachi?" he questioned, glancing around the group for confirmation before following Tooru to his car. "Can I drive, Bakakawa?"

"Sure," he shrugged, amused as he tossed him his keys. "Try to keep it under a hundred."

"Always with children present," he agreed, buckling Katashi into the back before climbing into the driver's seat.

Tooru managed the radio on the short trip, provoking Hajime with his shitty pop music; he rolled down Tooru's windows in retaliation, the wind leaving his hair looking like an absolute mess.

"Iwa-chan!" he shrieked, Katashi giggling evilly in the background.

"What? Sorry, can't hear you over that trash," he called back, shrugging with a smirk.

In response, Oikawa glared at him and cranked the volume up even louder. It seemed that since his hair was already a lost cause, he'd given up on the windows and decided to focus on getting revenge instead.

Hajime scowled through his laughter, struck quietly with the bliss of the moment; the next bit of the evening passed by in a blur, having a celebratory dinner and a drink with the team after Tooru assured him that he would drive.

They ended up back at Hajime's apartment after, Katashi bouncing in his car seat after a sugary dessert.

"Come on, Tashi-chan; you're going to crash hard," Tooru chuckled, pulling the boy from the backseat and following Hajime inside.

"But I'm not tired!"

"Mmhm. Well, let's just try and get some PJs on and then we'll see," Tooru hummed, winking at Hajime as the raven held the door. 

"Good luck," he mouthed at the brunette, amused.

It took Tooru a good half hour, but the man was both determined and right; Katashi crashed in his bed, listening to stories about friendly aliens and spiraling spaceships.

"Thanks for putting him to bed," Hajime inclined his head at Tooru as he slipped out of Katashi's room quietly.

"I don't mind, Iwa-chan," he smiled back, trotting over to peer eagerly at the bowls of ice cream Hajime had dished out.

"He goes to bed easier for you," he chuckled ruefully, passing him a bowl and moving to the couch. 

"It must be my charm," he winked, settling on the couch comfortably beside him, crossing his legs beneath him. 

The raven rolled his eyes at that but let it go, taking a bite of ice cream as the TV played The X-Files in the background.

"He's really enjoyed having you around so much," Hajime remarked around a spoonful of the sweet, glancing at him briefly. "Makes things easier for me to get him to eat and get his homework done."

"Bah...kids are always better for people who aren't their parents," Tooru waved off. "Besides, I've enjoyed being here..." He looked over at Hajime, his eyes becoming more subdued but just as sincere. "...it's really helped me, Hajime. Thank you."

"We like having you," he brushed off, nudging his arm lightly as he set his bowl aside. "Besides, it's good to have you around again... And it's a nice break from doing it all alone," he added, rubbing the back of his head; he'd never taken gratitude or compliments well, turning the focus back on Tooru again.

"...Iwa-chan... can I ask why she left you?" Oikawa asked suddenly after a moment, a quiet, gentle concern mingling with the subdued curiosity in his eyes.

Hajime sighed wearily and crossed his arms, sitting back against the cushions as he mulled over an answer; of course he trusted Tooru, but he hadn't told anyone the real truth... But then, he did owe Tooru something after all he'd done and the patience he'd had for both Iwaizumis.

"...I don't know... I assume she got scared; I hadn't seen her for about eight months before the hospital called me," he explained quietly, fingers lacing in front of him. "...She died in childbirth."

"...oh. I'm sorry." Oikawa rubbed the back of his head. "...if she really knew you, she shouldn't have been scared, though...you're a good man. You'd never turn away from something like that." 

"...She was also a drug addict, very much in debt to several people, with extreme anxiety and a past of abuse and neglect... I understand in a way why she ran," he muttered, readjusting on the couch. "And I suppose I knew better than to get involved... Look, Tooru, you can't tell anyone this; my mother doesn't even know the truth," he added, meeting his gaze steadily. 

"I won't tell, Iwa-chan," he promised, holding up a pinky. 

"...Right..." He hooked fingers with him, mildly amused; he looked past his shoulder as he sensed movement, freezing as he spotted Katashi standing just in the hall to his room, eyes wide.

"...Iwa-chan?" Tooru questioned when everything remained frozen, his head tilting and then turning to follow Hajime's gaze. "...oh...Tashi-chan..." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment your thoughts!  
> Kudos if you enjoyed! 
> 
> P.S. #sorrynotsorry for leaving you on a cliff hanger B )


	10. Chapter 10

"...Kaa-chan is...dead?" The boy's eyes filled with tears, his lip trembling. "...Y-you said..."

"Tash..." Hajime muttered, letting go of Tooru and standing; he didn't know what he should do, but...

Behind him, Tooru looked on, holding his tongue for the moment but poised on the edge of the couch as though for action. 

"...y-you...you l-lied, T-tou-chan?" 

"...No, I didn't lie," he told him gently, taking a few steps closer slowly. 

"Y-you said she h-had to go..."

"She did, Tash," he nodded as gently as he could, stopping again and kneeling in front of him, dropping to his level. "...It wasn't her choice..."

"Y-you just... said she left you," he whimpered, a tear rolling down his cheek. "D-does that...Does that m-mean she d-didn' want m-me, too?"

Hajime's shoulders sagged and his heart sank to his stomach as he pulled him into his chest. "No, Tash... She loved you very much..." he murmured, cradling the back of his head against his shoulder. "She loved us both..."

"B-but...then w-why'd she l-leave? M-maybe she'd s-still be h-here if..." 

Hajime bit his lip; it was a loaded statement, dangerous in it potence, though he doubted the boy quite understood it. 

"Sometimes, the decisions people make don't always make sense to the rest of us," Tooru suddenly said, his tone quiet and gentle as he approached. He didn't try to get between them, in fact he stayed a few feet away as he crouched down, arms crossed over his knees as he balanced on the balls of his feet. "The thing is, though, that each and every one of us sees the world a little differently. Even though a choice might seem silly or even hurtful to us, it might seem like the only option to the person who made it. Your mother must have truly believed she was doing the right thing. She probably saw it as the best way not to hurt either of you, even though it ended up having the opposite effect..." 

Hajime nodded just slightly, biting the inside of his cheek as he sat down on the floor, Katashi finally hugging him back tightly as he peered at Tooru with red-rimmed eyes.

"...Th-that's unf-fair..."

"I know," Tooru nodded. "But sometimes that's just how things are...we have to just do the best we can and hope the outcome works out the way we want it to."

The boy turned his face into Hajime's shoulder, shaking as his tears flowed freely and he clung to his father.

"I know..." Hajime mumbled thickly, pressing into the top of Katashi's head and rubbing his back gently, his eyes closed tightly and brow scrunched; his entire body was tensed as he comforted the boy to the best of his ability, murmuring at him quietly. 

Tooru shifted slightly in his place watching, seeming uncertain whether to close in or give them more space as Katashi's crying started to ebb, though the tension remained. 

Hajime sighed heavily as his son's sobs turned to sniffles, clearing his throat a bit as he gathered him better against his chest. 

"It's alright, Tash...Let's get to bed, mm? We'll watch puppy patrol," he muttered, easing to his feet properly with him in his arms; he glanced at Tooru briefly, seeming uncertain what to tell him as well.

"I can let myself out," he mouthed silently, pointing at the door with a bracing but reluctant glance.

"Tou-chan," Katashi mumbled against his shoulder, lifting his head slightly. "C-could Tooru-chan come too...?"

Tooru blinked, actually flushing a little where he stood. Hajime merely stroked the boy's back and nodded slightly, something inside him seeming to click into place at the small voice's words. 

"Yeah...c'mon, Tooru."

The brunette followed after a moment, taking the time to turn off the TV and lights as they shuffled to Hajime's room.

The Iwaizumis crouched by the dresser, digging through night clothes to change into and offer Tooru, the process and choice seeming to help pull the boy into a slightly less tumultuous mood.

"The Godzilla ones?"

"Yeah..." he mumbled, nodding sharply.

"Here, Tooru," Hajime murmured, tossing the stack to him neatly before climbing into bed, piling up the pillows comfortably as possible.

Tooru stepped into the bathroom briefly to change before rejoining them, taking up the empty space on one side of the bed. 

Hajime pulled him closer, the two of them cradling Katashi between them warmly as the cartoons played across the screen; Katashi sniffled a bit every now and then, buried into Hajime's side but clinging onto one of Tooru's hands, Hajime's arm around him protectively.

They spent most of the night like this, until Katashi had finally drifted off, Hajime rather drowsy himself. 

"...sleep, Iwa-chan. I'll be up in case he wakes," Tooru murmured. 

"Thank you, Tooru..." he muttered back, glancing at him tiredly before closing his eyes, hiding the pain in them as he gathered the boy closer still.

"...I'm here if you need me, too, you know," Tooru added softly, almost too quietly for Hajime to hear. 

His eyes cracked briefly, the arm around Katashi shifting to encompass both of them, his hand pressing warmly against Tooru's back. "Mm..."

Tooru reached over to run his free fingers through Hajime's hair once soothingly in response, his eyes full of concern as he watched him in the dim light from the TV. 

His eyes closed again shortly, breaths evening out and deepening as he drifted off, trusting Tooru to keep watch.

-

Hajime winced as his alarm went off early the next morning, hand clumsily grabbing his phone and struggling a moment to turn it off.

Katashi mumbled incoherently for a moment, burying closer to Hajime and curling his hands into his father's shirt.

"...Just go back to sleep," he mumbled at him groggily, gathering his son closer again and glancing over to see if he woke Tooru.

_Not gonna make him go to school...I'll call in sick..._

Tooru stared back at him, dark circles under his eyes. 

"You want me to call in for you, Iwa-chan?" he asked, tone tired but determined. 

"...I'll get it," he muttered, reaching over and tugging a blanket over the brunette more securely; he flipped his phone and dialed in his work number quickly, muttering to his boss on the other end, and then he made a second call to Katashi's school, watching Tooru out of the corner of his eye.

Tooru merely tucked the blanket around Katashi more securely, ruffling his hair gently and soothing him back to sleep as Hajime handled the necessary paperwork, so to speak. 

By the time he finished, Katashi had switched to cuddling Tooru's chest instead, one of his arms hooked around Oikawa's neck loosely as he snored against his shoulder. Tooru was rubbing rhythmic circles into his back, his eyes switching between watching Hajime and the TV, looking rather glazed and unfocused. 

"...Your turn," Hajime muttered, sitting up slightly and tucking his arm beneath Tooru's head. "Not likely I'll get to sleep again anyways..."

"...right..." Tooru let his eyes slip closed, one arm wrapping around Katashi; he reached to twine his free fingers with one of Hajime's hands. "...night, Iwa-chan..." 

He squeezed his hand gently in return, resting his cheek against the top of his head with a quiet, "Sleep tight, Tooru..."

"Mmmhm..." The setter fell silent swiftly, his breathing deep and even. 

_Well.... That's not how I planned things to go..._

Hajime sighed softly, kissing both of their crowns before turning his gaze back to the screen.

_I guess... We need him more than I thought..._

They ended up wasting the whole morning lying in bed, until finally Katashi woke up and glanced between them groggily, Oikawa still passed out deeply.

"...Tou-chan?"

"Tash?" he rumbled, ruffling his hair softly.

"...Tooru-chan wouldn't... He's never gonna leave us, right?"

"Oh...well. I can't speak for him, but...I wouldn't worry," Hajime replied, smiling faintly. 

"...Okay..." he nodded slightly, taking the tissue Hajime offered to wipe his eyes and blow his nose.

"Want to take a shower? I bet it would help," Hajime suggested, glancing at the bathroom.

The boy shrugged and nodded, letting Hajime help him escape from Tooru's grasp and climbing off of the bed before shuffling to Hajime's shower.

Iwaizumi sighed silently and sat back against the pillows, closing his eyes for a long moment as he collected himself again; the woman just kept creeping back to the front of his mind, guilt churning in his stomach.

"...I know that look, Iwa-chan." 

"You're supposed to be asleep," Hajime replied flatly, eyes flicking over to him.

"I woke up," Tooru shrugged, watching him sleepily. "...it's not your fault, you know."

"Mm...I know," he muttered, looking up at the cieling. "Just...If I'd maybe done more or something..."

"...in that situation...sometimes people just won't let you help them, even if you're willing to give them everything. You did the best you could. The best she would let you." 

"I know," he repeated, tucking an arm under his head as he looked at Tooru again. "I just wish it didn't have to be this way for Katashi...I was going to tell him when he got older... It's not easy for him to understand..."

He reached over to rest his palm in the center of Hajime's chest, a comforting counterpoint to his twisting gut. 

"...I know. But at least he knows the truth now."

He sighed and turned to the TV, not sure if the fact comforted or upset him more as one of his hands rested over Tooru's silently. Tooru flipped his hand to twine their fingers, giving Hajime's hand a squeeze. 

When Katashi came back out of the bathroom with Hajime's comb, the two had settled against each other's sides, Tooru asleep again on Hajime's shoulder. 

"Hey. Better?" Hajime grunted quietly, patting the bed beside him. 

Katashi climbed up next to him, settling against his side and shrugging. 

"...a little..." 

"Ah..." He wrapped an arm around him and pulled him closer, kissing the top of his head lightly. "...Anything I can do?"

Katashi shook his head, merely snuggling a little closer. 

"...I'll be okay, Tou-chan," he said quietly. "...it just...hurts."

"I know," he murmured, rubbing his back slowly.

The boy got quiet again, laying against Hajime and watching the TV. 

They lazed around for most of the day, Hajime nudging him onto Tooru when his stomach growled. 

"I'll go make some lunch, alright? Keep an eye on Bakakawa."

"Okay," the boy promised, fingers hooking into Tooru's shirt as he settled half on top of him. 

Hajime smiled faintly to himself, easing off of the mattress and padding quietly to the kitchen.

When he returned, Tooru had awakened and coaxed the boy into a discussion of his favorite show; a new episode was currently playing on the TV, a commercial break ending and also ending the conversation. 

Tooru looked over at him as he entered, smiling faintly. 

"Hungry?" he asked, crawling into bed with three plates balanced in his hands, waters tucked under his arm.

"Yeah, thanks," Tooru nodded, accepting one of the plates and then looking mildly amused when Katashi shushed them both. 

Hajime pressed his lips together to contain a chuckle, setting a plate in Katashi's lap carefully before picking up his sandwich to take a bite.   

The boy stayed raptly focused on the show until it ended, at which point he picked up his sandwich and took a bite, seeming in much better spirits now (if still a bit down).  

Hajime took a quick shower and changed into day clothes, crossing his arms as he returned to the edge of the bed, finding the two still curled up in the pillows. 

"...What do you think about dinner at the park tonight, Katashi?" Hajime asked, leaning on the edge slightly.

"That might be fun," he said, smiling at Hajime. "Can we?" 

"Yeah. We can grab burgers across the street and maybe pass a ball around," he nodded, sitting down again and draping an arm over both their shoulders. "What do you think, Tooru?"

"I'm in," Tooru chirped. "Should be fun, huh, Tashi-chan?"

"Yeah; you can set for me," he smiled slyly, sipping from his juicebox happily.

"I'm honored that you'd allow me the privilege," he chuckled, ruffling the boy's hair.

"You should be."

Both adults laughed at that, Hajime pinching Katashi's side gently with a shake of his head. The boy yelped and swatted at his hand, looking huffy now as he sipped from his juice.

"What?" Hajime arched his brow, waiting for him to put the juice aside before poking his side again.

"Don't poke me," he pouted, peering up at Hajime with puppy eyes.

"Poke you? Like this?" he questioned, pinching his other side.

"Don't do that," the boy insisted, crawling across the bed to hide behind Tooru. 

"Do what?' he insisted, smirking faintly as he sat up.

"You're tickling me! You always do this, Tou-chan," he huffed, peering over Tooru's shoulder at him. 

"Tickling you? Like this?" He grinned, reaching around Tooru swiftly, fingers wiggling teasingly.

"Noo!" he shrieked, scrambling off the bed. 

"Yes," he laughed, lunging after him and turning around when he felt something hold him back, finding Tooru's hand fisted in his shirt.

"Run, Tashi-chan!" Tooru cried dramatically, pushing Hajime down and pinning him in place. "I'll hold him off!"

He squealed and ducked out the door.

Hajime rolled his eyes and flipped them with a quick, strong shove, eyes narrowed at the brunette mischievously. 

"Guess you'll have to deal with it, then," he stated, fingers dancing over Tooru's side.

"Eek! Iwa-chan!" he yelped, flailing under him as laughter bubbled from his lips. 

"Tooru," he laughed, looking up as Katashi appeared in the doorway with his godzilla pillow.

"I'm coming, Tooru-chan!" he announced, charging up and leaping onto the bed to start swatting at Hajime with his pillow. 

Iwaizumi caught him around the waist and tossed him further up the bed, one hand still pinning Tooru down.

They wrestled for a while, each getting hit with the godzilla pillow quite a lot in between all the tickling and rough housing. 

"If you want to go to the park, you better get changed," Hajime chuckled breathlessly as he tossed Katashi across the bed again, Tooru hanging off of his back.

Katashi stared at him and then huffed and trotted off to get dressed. 

Tooru chuckled into his ear as the boy disappeared. 

"Well...I think we're all okay."

"We've always been," he hummed back, relaxing a bit and then shrugging. "Get off; you're hot and need to change, too."

"I know I'm hot, Iwa-chan," he winked teasingly. 

"You're sweating down my back," he agreed, his neck heating slightly.

He sighed dramatically and let go, flopping out on the bed. 

"Do you need to borrow clothes?" he offered, his eyes flicking over him once.

"Kinda of...I don't have anything clean."

Hajime strode over to his closet and dug through until he found some gym shorts and a t-shirt, tossing them to him. "Anything else?"

"Well...I'd rather not go commando..." 

He sighed and pulled open his dresser, grabbing the set on top and tossing it back to him.

"Godzilla? Cute, Iwa-chan."

"Tch, if you don't want them, then by all means..." he grumbled, striding huffily from the room to gather what they'd need for the park trip.

Tooru emerged fully dressed a few minutes later, flicking through his phone absently. 

Katashi bounced to meet them eagerly taking their hands and practically skipping out the door between the men, beaming and giving Hajime's heart a painful tug of relief.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comment your thoughts!  
> Kudos if you enjoyed!   
> Thanks for reading!


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boot Camp, Lizards, and a temporary relocation.

It was an early morning at the gym, Hajime arriving ahead of time after seeing Katashi off to school with the neighbor, which was fortunate as it gave him some time to stretch out and get a room in order; a group had actually signed up for a session of boot camp, which was surprising but good news. 

"Got your room set up?" his boss questioned, ducking into the studio. 

He looked up from the stereo system, his phone plugged in. "Of course," he assured, ruffling his hair. 

"Good. Try and go easy on them, mm? I'd like to keep the program," he added, only half joking. "It's a big group."

"Will do," Iwaizumi promised; the extra income would be really great to have, though he'd have to remind himself to go easy.

"I'll lead them back upon arrival." With that, the man disappeared from the room.

Hajime shook his head to himself and started up a playlist, sitting down on the hardwood floor and stretching out a bit ahead of time.

Shortly after, the door swung open and several conversations floated into the room, prompting the raven to jump to his feet. 

"Hey guys. Welcome to camp," he greeted cheerfully, offering a hand to the first person through the door; looking at him more closely, he recognized him as Oikawa's current coach. 

"Thanks," the older man chuckled, shaking his hand firmly. "You must be Iwaizumi."

"Yes sir," Hajime confirmed, glancing behind him in mild confusion as Tooru herded his team inside eagerly. 

"We've heard good things about your program," the coach complimented, releasing his hand. "We thought we might break up our routine a little. Oikawa insisted this was the place to be."

Hajime's jaw dropped. 

Oikawa...

Hastily composing himself, he nodded briskly. "Of course, if your boys can keep up." 

"We'll do our best," he laughed again, slapping him on the back before joining the rest of the team.

Hajime nodded at Oikawa when he grinned at him, the team already forming three neat rows in the space, quieting for him.

He cleared his throat and clasped his hands behind his back, addressing the group. "Morning everyone. My name is Iwaizumi Hajime and I'll be your instructor for today's boot camp. We're going to start off with some warm up stretches." He had the group spread out a little bit more and then lead them through a long string of stretches, adding a bit of focus on their legs- he didn't want to chance anyone hurting themselves today, after all. 

Then the hellfire that was Iwaizumi's boot camp began.

"Come on, boys! I thought you were Olympic Athletes!" he bellowed over the music, laying in a rigid plank and surveying the men in the room, some struggling a more than fair amount. "Keep it up! Thirty more seconds! Ten minute break after this one, and then you've got a whole lovely hour more with me!"

There were more than a few worried looks at that announcement. 

Hajime chuckled and got to his feet once time was up, retrieving his water and wandering through the group to check on a few he was worried about- he caught up with Oikawa last, the man wheezing a bit and sprawled on the floor limply.

"You're a brute as always, Iwa-chan," he puffed, pushing himself upright. 

"Ah, well, Tashi keeps up just fine," Hajime replied, smirking faintly. "You doing alright?" 

"I'm fine," Oikawa insisted, shaking his head and waving a hand. 

"Good. Because lunges with weight are next, and I think we'll end with burpees," he replied casually, straightening again.

"You're a bad man, Iwa-chan," he said flatly, shaking his head 

Hajime laughed heartily at that, striding back to the front of the room. "Once you've all caught your breath, we'll do a little more stretching and get back to it."

There was a rather reluctant chorus of agreement from the group.

"I think I'll sit this half out," the coach mused sheepishly, taking a seat near the door.

Iwaizumi just grinned.

By the time the gym session was over, everyone but Hajime was utterly drenched in sweat, sitting on the floor to cool off and rehydrate exhaustedly.

"You don't have to always be so mean, you know, Iwa-chan," Oikawa was pouting as he made his rounds. 

"Mean?" he questioned innocently, arching his brow. "I was just being tough on you. I know you guys can handle it."

"There's tough and there's mean," Tooru huffed, though his eyes had a playful spark in them. 

He rolled his eyes and shook his head, "Mmhm. You'll-" He broke off as his phone buzzed in his pocket, pausing to glance at the caller ID. "Er, excuse me for a moment," he frowned, stepping just outside to take the call. "Kaa-san, you know I'm at work..."

"Yes, well, apparently your son got into trouble at school," she replied, sounding more amused than upset. "Did you tell him he could bring his bug terrarium to show and tell?" 

"Well...I didn't say he couldn't?" Hajime said cautiously. 

She laughed on the other end for a few long moments before she could reply. "W-well he's been asked not to bring it back! Heh heh...He showed them his lizard and it-haha!- it got loose! Started a panic!"

Hajime pressed his lips together in an attempt to keep from simultaneously freaking out and laughing hysterically. 

"Oh. I see."

"Anyways- heh heh...Oh, sorry. Anyways, do you need me to pick him up or would you like to get him after school?"

"I'll get him after school. Nearly done," Hajime replied. 

"Okay, dear! Sorry to bother," she giggled, the phone rustling. "Love you, goodbye."

Iwaizumi hung up and rubbed at his brow, a chuckle finally slipping past his lips as he turned back to the room.

"We done now, Iwa-chan?" Oikawa asked. 

"Yup," he confirmed, clapping his hands together. "Great work guys; I knew you could keep up. Do this routine and you'll be looking like this in no time," he joked, gesturing at himself. 

"Yay..." was chorused from the group wearily. 

He laughed again and shook a few hands as they passed him on their way out.

"Where you off to, Iwa-cha-agh!?" Oikawa asked, jogging to catch up and then tripping into Hajime as his knee buckled unexpectedly. 

He'd never been more grateful for his lightning quick reflexes, catching him easily and dropping down to one knee with a grunt, eyes slightly wide. "Bakakawa!" he huffed, glancing at his knee and then his expression sharply; he better not have overdone it already.

"I'm fine, Iwa-chan. Just tired," Oikawa waved off stubbornly. "Where ya going?" 

His frown deepened and he placed a hand on his knee, checking for swelling and extending and folding it closer to his chest. "I have to go pick up Tashi."

"Would you like some company? We're free to go," he said, watching Hajime assess his knee. 

"Yeah. I've got a brace in my truck you can put on," he sighed, relaxing a little and helping him back up, his hands hovering for a moment.

"I don't need it," Oikawa waved off, merely following. 

"But you'll wear it," he countered, getting the door for him. "Tashi will cheer right up now, at least."

"Is something wrong with him?" Oikawa asked, frowning. 

"No. But..." he sighed shaking his head with another chuckle. "It was show and tell. He apparently brought his terrarium with a lizard in it, but took it out and... I guess unleashed all hell in the classroom." He glanced over at Oikawa, struggling to hold in his laughter again.

Oikawa blinked at him once.

"Sounds like something you'd have done at that age."

"Yeah, well... I did raise him," he mused, pulling open the driver side door and climbing in.

"That's true. Kid never had a chance," Tooru winked. 

"Bah. He's perfect," he waved off, digging the knee brace from his center console and shoving it into his hand. "Buckle up and put it on, or we're going to be late."

Tooru rolled his eyes and buckled up in response, taking the brace to fiddle with. 

"Oikawa," he stated, glancing at his knee pointedly.

"What?" he replied innocently. 

He rolled his eyes back and snagged the brace, leaning over Tooru's lap and strapping on the brace himself.

"Unnecessary, Iwa-chan," he sighed, cheeks flushing. 

"Entirely," he assured, sitting back up and buckling his seatbelt; he looked up as he turned the key, locking eyes with Oikawa's slightly bewildered coach.

"...he was putting a brace on," Oikawa supplied, lifting his leg to point. 

"Right...Well, have a great day," he waved off, ducking into his own car across from the truck.

Hajime growled under his breath and backed out of the lot, ears hot.

Oikawa merely rolled his eyes, readjusting his brace absently. 

"Ahem. Anyways... Why did you all show up at my gym?" he asked, arching his brow at the brunette as he drove off.

"We need a new trainer. While we wait, we need someone to train us," Oikawa explained matter of factly.

"That so?" he muttered, his turn signal ticking softly as they came to a halt at a red light. "I'm sure it won't take long to replace him."

"Probably not at this rate," Oikawa mused, curiously smug about something. 

He frowned at him briefly before turning back to the road, taking off as the light turned green. "So are you coming over for dinner then? We'll have to stop and grab some groceries anyways."

"Am I invited? I can cook, Iwa-chan," Oikawa said, sounding excited. 

"Yeah, I just asked you," he mused, leaning back in his seat and sighing heavily at the large school pick up line. "You still feel up to cooking after that workout?"

"Of course I do, Iwa-chan," Oikawa grinned. "I have an idea in mind."

"Great," he hummed, fiddling with the radio and easing forward with the line of parents. "Do we need to stop at yours for clothes or anything?"

"If I'm staying over, probably," Tooru nodded. 

"Alright. We'll go to the supermarket then; yours is on the way back to mine from there." 

They sat in comfortable quiet from then on, Oikawa scrolling through his phone and Iwaizumi mulling over his day, until there was a knock on the passenger window and the principal's face appeared. 

Oh boy.

He rolled down the window and offered a friendly nod. "Afternoon, Principal Riku."

"Your son brought a lizard into class today, Iwaizumi-san," the man said sternly.

"It was show and tell, right?" Tooru chirped from the passenger seat. 

The man glanced at him in surprise, not having expected anyone to be with him. "Yes. Iwaizumi-san, you-"

"He did show them and tell them about the creature, didn't he?" Tooru pointed out. "He's like his father. Passionate about creepy crawlies. Nothing wrong with that."

"There is when it causes a serious class disruption," the man replied firmly, looking to Hajime again. "Please, he cannot bring any more bugs or lizards to school."

Hajime sighed and nodded, ruffling his hair, "Right. Sorry about that."

"Nothing wrong with hands on learning," Oikawa pointed out, his jaw setting into an expression Iwaizui knew only too well. 

"I am having a conversation with Iwaizumi-san," the principal answered, still watching Hajime. "We appreciate it. Have a good day." 

Katashi climbed into the back seat then, closing the truck door carefully and sinking into his seat.

Oikawa opened his mouth to argue and Hajime elbowed him to quiet him. 

"You too, sir," Hajime nodded, rolling up the window and edging out of the line as swiftly as possible; he pulled over shortly in a park, turning in his seat. "How you doin', Tash?"

"Jerk," Oikawa grumbled under his breath. 

He sniffled and glanced up at him from underneath wet lashes. 

Hajime reached back and undid his seatbelt, pulling him into the front with Oikawa. "Alright, Bud. Tell me about it," he hummed, giving him a tissue.

Oikawa ruffled the boy's hair gently, lips pulling into an unhappy expression.

He flushed at Oikawa, hurriedly wiping at his face and sitting up straighter. "Just, um...a bad show and tell... It's dumb..."

"Tash, it's not dumb," Hajime said firmly. "It was an accident, and that's okay, they happen. You didn't mean to let it loose. I'm not upset with you."

"It wasn't a bad show and tell. It was a good one," Oikawa ensured him firmly. "That guy is just an idiot."

"...None of the others liked it," he mumbled, fiddling with his hands. "All the girls call me gross now. They said bugs are creepy and have cooties, so now I have bug cooties..."

"Well, bugs certainly don't have cooties," Hajime scowled, pulling him into his chest firmly. "They're really cool. And so are lizards. Godzilla is a lizard, and she's the coolest thing ever," he insisted, rubbing his back firmly.

"Girls are dumb, trust me," Oikawa stated. "Don't listen to them until at least high school. Just humor them."

He puffed out his cheeks and nodded, sitting up and crawling over to hug Oikawa now. "Okay... Tou-san says you know everything about girls, so... Thanks for coming to pick me up, Tooru-chan."

"Anytime, Tashi," he promised, smiling back at him and then glancing at Iwaizumi with a sort of secret in his eyes. 

After a moment, Iwaizumi shifted a few things out of the way so Katashi could sit up front with them. 

"How about some icecream on the way home? We have to get groceries and stop by Tooru's anyways," Hajime suggested, kissing the top of his head. 

"Can we?" Katashi asked, eyes wide. 

"Course we can," Tooru hummed easily. 

"And Tooru offered to cook dinner tonight," Hajime added, pulling out of the parking lot. "Should we stop at the ice cream shop or get a tub from the store?"

"The ice cream shop is better..." Katashi mumbled. 

"How about we get a pint to go from the shop?" Tooru suggested,

"Great idea," Hajime hummed, his arm draping across the back of the seat.

"Yeah!" Katashi chirped, already seeming to be perking up as he turned to Oikawa.

They made the trips quickly, eventually parking outside of Oikawa's house while the brunette ran inside to grab some clean clothes.

"He's hanging out with you today, Tou-chan?" 

"Mmhm. Well, actually, his team came to the gym for my boot camp. He wanted to come along to pick you up," he clarified, glancing over at him.

"Oh. Did you kick their butts?" he asked, peering up at him. 

"Course I did; they could hardly keep up better than you," he chuckled, ruffling his hair. "You might have to show them how it's done."

"Okay," he nodded enthusiastically. "It'll be fun!"

"Definitely," he agreed, looking up as Oikawa bounced back to the truck. 

"Ready," the man announced, settling into the seat.

"Alright then," Hajime hummed, steering the truck back onto the road.

-

"Can I help make dinner, Tooru-chan?" Katashi requested once he'd finished his homework at the table, Iwaizumi tucking his folder into his backpack.

"Of course you can, Chef Tashi," Oikawa replied cheekily, pulling a couple of aprons from his bag.

He beamed and bounced closer at that, grabbing the stepping stool Iwaizumi kept in the kitchen. "What are we makin'?" He happily pulled on one or the aprons, smoothing it down meticulously.

"A nice healthy but delicious stir fry," Oikawa replied, ruffling his hair and then going to the sink. "Gotta wash our hands first."

"Right!"

Hajime leaned against the counter to watch, resting his chin in the palm of his hand and possibly taking a picture or five of them. Oikawa walked the boy through the steps, helping him chop vegetables with a steak knife and showing him how to properly layer them in the wok. 

"You do the cooking part," he insisted of Oikawa, dragging his stool to the sink to wash his hands. "And I'll set the table with Tou-chan!"

"Good idea, Tashi-chan," Oikawa smiled, mixing the rice and veggies neatly.

This left Hajime to help set the table, Katashi walking him through the steps very carefully and straightening all his napkins. 

"Nice work." Hajime fist bumped him gently, and then went to help Oikawa bring the meal over.

The raven worried for a bit that Katashi might not like the meal, being so picky about what he ate, but after warily examining the food and taking a bite, he evidently decided he liked it.

He won't try anything I make for him... Brat.

"What do you think of our creation, Tashi-chan?" Oikawa asked. 

"It's delicious!" he beamed, scooping up another mouthful. "Tou-chan, onions aren't so bad afterall!"

"I told you," he muttered, shaking his head with a quiet laugh. "I'm glad you like it, Katashi-chan."

The boy stuffed a pinch of rice and broccoli into his mouth in response, cheeks puffed up. 

He laughed again and smiled at Tooru, mouthing a "thank you" behind his hand as he picked up another bite.

Tooru merely winked at him, turning to his own food.

They all helped clean up after they ate, and then Hajime took Katashi to shower off while Tooru used Hajime's shower himself.

Iwa tucked him into bed shortly after, in his favorite bug-patterned pjs. 

"Don't let anyone change who you are, or what you like," he told him, tapping his nose. "You're perfect, Katashi. Bugs are awesome, lizards are Godzilla's great great grandchildren, and girls are overrated."

He laughed at him and bobbed his head, puckering his lips at him. "Night, Tou-chan. I love you. Tell Tooru-chan for me, too."

"I will. Love you too, Bud. Night," he smiled, kissing his cheek before tucking him in just a little more snug, and then ducking out of the room. 

He shuffled into his bedroom just in time for Oikawa to emerge from the bathroom, an old pair of volleyball sweats hanging from his hips. 

"Can't believe those still fit," he remarked, rummaging through his pj drawer.

"They're comfy," Oikawa shrugged back, pocketing his hands. "So couch?"

"Yeah. I'm just going to change."

"Meet you there," he smiled, bouncing out to the living room. 

Iwaizumi caught up with him shortly, flopping into the cushions and letting him pick. "Tashi said night and he loves you, by the way."

"Did he get to sleep alright?"

"Yeah. He's fine now... I already emailed his teacher about the other students, so I hope that'll help him out tomorrow..." he sighed, tossing a blanket over the setter. 

"Good..." he trailed off, curling up on the couch sleepily; he dozed off fairly quickly, but Hajime wasn't surprised; his workouts tended to do that to people.

Shaking his head, he covered him up more snugly and stood, going to his own bed for the evening; it'd been a hell of a day.

One that evidently wasn't over.

Firm knocking at his front door roused him awake at midnight, Hajime scrambling up tiredly and hurrying to the door as Tooru sat up, confused. 

"What the hell?' Hajime groaned, yanking open the door to find his landlord in the hall. 

"There's a minor gas leak, but everyone has to be evacuated from the building. Grab your essentials and leave," he informed him, moving to the next door before questions could be asked.

He blinked, and then swiftly closed the door. "Tooru, grab Katashi and take him out to the truck. I'm going to grab essentials and meet you out. There's a gas leak in the building."

"Gas leak?" Tooru muttered, snapping to wakefulness and unfolding from the couch in a graceful flail. He moved into action silently, glasses appearing on his nose after a quick stop in Hajime's room. 

The raven tossed him his truck keys and duffle, retrieving his own from the closet and stuffing it with his wallet, a few clothes, toiletries, and chargers, and then doing the same with Katashis things; he snagged his son's backpack and Godzilla plush before locking up and jogging down the stairs.

Tooru was waiting by the truck, Katashi clinging to his back sleepily. 

"We can just go to my place, Iwa-chan," Tooru said before Hajime could speak. 

"Alright," he agreed, tossing the bags in the back seat. "Thanks, Tooru." 

It was actually the second time there had been a gas leak in the building, which meant Hajime was definitely going to look for a new apartment.

"No need, Iwa-chan...you guys should just move in," Tooru said teasingly. "Got enough room..."

"We'll think about it," Hajime replied, keeping the same answer he gave last time; maybe they would, but they would have to work that out another time. "This turn, right?"

"Right,"Tooru chirped, continuing to direct him from then on.

They parked at his about twenty minutes later, Hajime carrying in the bags after Tooru, Kakashi still clinging to him. 

"We just need one room," he muttered quietly, closing the door behind them.

"If you're sure, Iwa-chan," he shrugged, leading them to a large guest room. 

He set their bags aside neatly, tucking Katashi's school bag by the door so they wouldn't forget, and then turned back to the bed.

Katashi was whining sleepily, clinging to the brunette as he attempted to detach the boy. 

"C'mon, Tashi-channn... Gotta let go," he chuckled softly, blowing a raspberry on his cheek.

"Tou-chan... stop..." 

Hajime shook his head and climbed into bed himself, tugging Oikawa onto the mattress. "Night."

"Night," Oikawa chuckled, settling with them comfortably; soon enough, his breaths slowed and evened out, lulling Hajime back to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So sorry for the long wait between updates; I know how it feels to be waiting and waiting for the next chapter, and it's awful! I'll try to update more often, but Life Happens and with a busy schedule, who knows? I promise this fic will be finished at the very least!   
> I'm also going to be editing a few chapters; no major changes will be made, but I hope to improve the overall quality of the story!   
> Thank you so much for reading and sticking around! Let me know what you think in the comments, and I'll see you next chapter!


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Settling, a Job, and Setters

Hajime groaned as his phone alarm screeched him away, patting around for it until it went silent. He sank back into the mattress then, rubbing at his tired eyes and sighing deeply.

A snore drew his attention to the rest of the bed, finding Katashi completely flattened beneath a deeply passed out Oikawa, his son's wide eyes pleading for freedom.

Chuckling, he coaxed Oikawa onto his side off of the boy.

"He's heavy!" Katashi whispered loudly.

"Yes he is," Hajime hummed, sitting up slightly. "Your clothes and toothbrush is in my duffle; the bathroom is right across the hall. I'll be there in just a minute."

"Okay..." he sighed, climbing off the bed and trudging off. 

He shook his head and glanced down at Tooru, watching as he smooshed his nose into his armpit, a pool of drool already forming on his side. "Tooru," he nudged, rolling his eyes at him and wiping at the spit with the edge of the blanket. 

"Nnnn," Tooru responded, wiping a hand across his face.

"Mmhm. How's that smell? I didn't even get to rinse off yesterday," he remarked casually, wrapping his forearm across his shoulders in an iron grip.

"Iwa-chan!" came the muffled complaint, Oikawa squirming and whining unhappily. 

"Bakakawa?" He grinned and wrestled him back down until he started to whine louder, releasing him for the sake of his ears. 

"Brute," Oikawa huffed, pushing himself up. 

"Says the one that was flattening my son five minutes ago."

"He started it," Oikawa mumbled. 

Iwaizumi laughed at that, crawling out of bed to go catch up with his son, snagging his duffle, "Right. Of course he did."

"Bye, stinkywa-chan," Oikawa called after him.

He flipped him off behind his back, stepping into the bathroom and giving Katashi a boost to perch on the counter with his toothbrush. "Getting the back ones?" he asked him, leaning over the sink with his own brush.

He gargled a reply, nodding his head for clarification; they rinsed out their mouthes shortly after and Hajime handed him a shirt and shorts to change into.

"Oikawa," he called, catching him as he ducked out of the guestroom. "Do you have any cereal or fruit I can get him for breakfast?"

"Kitchen...should have lots of food," Oikawa called back, continuing on his way to his own room. 

"Thanks."

He lead Katashi out to the counter, setting him up on a stool as he looked through the meticulously labeled cabinets for a cereal Katashi was snack on. 

"How about we try some of Oikawa's special cereal? And milk," Hajime suggested, filling a bowl swiftly.

"Is it good?" he questioned suspiciously, eyeing the less than colorful meal.

"I guess we'll find out, huh?" Hajime asked, picking up two spoons and passing one to the boy. 

He pursed his lips but nodded, scooping up a mouthful and waiting pointedly for Hajime to try it first.

Amused, he dumped a few bits a cereal into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. "Mm. Mmm... 's really good, Tash."

The boy sniffed at the spoonful cautiously before putting it in his mouth. His nose wrinkled but he chewed it down dutifully. 

"It's so...cardboardy, Tou-chan."

"Yeah? Hm... What if we just..." he muttered, rummaging through the kitchen and then drizzling honey over the bowl. "How about now?"

"It's a little better..." he said after taking another bite. 

"Better finish it up then; wouldn't want to waste Tooru-chan's food," he nodded, taking another bite before setting his spoon in the sink. "I'll go grab your bag."

The boy sighed but nodded, starting to eat with a bit more gusto. 

Tooru emerged as they were about to leave, dressed and showered. 

"Have a good day, Tashi-chan," he chirped. 

"You too, Tooru-chan!" he beamed, bouncing over to hug him firmly before racing out the door.

"I'm heading to work after I drop him off. Are we good to come back here after?" Hajime asked him as he shouldered his son's back pack, pausing in the doorway.

"Of course," Tooru nodded, hastening to a drawer in the kitchen. "Here, take the key just in case I'm not here." He hurried over to Hajime, pressing a small key into his hand. 

"Thanks... I'll handle dinner," he added, closing his fingers around the key. "See you later."

"All right. See you later, Iwa-chan!" he replied, a smile widening on his face. 

-

Hajime returned to Tooru's around five, setting Katashi at the table to work on his homework while he set about getting dinner cooking; he kept it simple, baking some chicken breasts and steaming some vegetables to have with it.

The mundane task gave him some time to consider the offer he'd been made at work earlier; Oikawa's coach had dropped by and propositioned him for the team's head physical trainer. 

Of course the pay would be so much better, and he was rather excited about the idea of the job, but it would come with a lot of travelling, and he couldn't just leave Katashi so much. Details would have to be worked out, and he had a lot to consider before he made any decisions.

Tooru's arrival cut into his thoughts, the setter appearing over his shoulder and then nudging him aside to get to the fridge Hajime had been rummaging in. He retrieved a bottle of sport drink and then wandered off again with a vague hum at Hajime in greeting. 

"Hey... Dinner's ready in about fifteen," he told him, glancing at the timer; a shake of his head cleared his thoughts a bit, his attention focusing on Katashi. "How's the homework, Tash?"

"Almost done," the boy informed him.

Tooru nodded again and perched on a stool, sipping at his drink quietly and fiddling with his phone.

"Mmkay..." He ran a hand through his hair and leaned his elbows on the counter, thoughts trailing back to the job offer; he ducked outside after a moment, pulling his phone from his pocket.

_"Hello?"_

"Hey Kaa-chan," Hajime greeted, leaning against the side of Oikawa's house.

_"Hajime, how are you?"_ she asked, sounding pleased.

"Doing alright... We're staying at Tooru's since there was another leak at the apartment," he added, tilting his head back. "He was over anyways, so he didn't mind."

_"That place...I know it's a hassle, Hajime, but maybe it's time to move..."_

"Yeah... I am. It's the second time, and I don't feel comfortable with Katashi being there," he agreed, sliding down to the grass. "Tooru wants us to move in with him. So I might work something out with him... I got offered a new job, too. I don't know if I should take it."

_"I think you should take Tooru up on it. He's reliable and reasonable; he'd be a good landlord. What's the job offer?"_

He chuckled slightly, mussing his hair again. "Reasonable and Tooru is odd to hear in the same sentence... It's Tooru's coach, actually; he asked me to take over Head PT."

_"That's wonderful, Hajime! You'll get to work with Olympic level athletes. I bet the pay is great, too."_

"Yeah, I mean...It's a great opportunity, and I'll be making a six figure salary. But it's also a lot of travel... And I don't want to be away from Katashi that much. I don't know if homeschooling is even an option to look at. And just... I miss the court. I don't know how that'll affect me, and Tooru's going to be everywhere..."

_"Katashi is important to consider, it's true...however, with that big a boost in your salary, you'll be able to give him a lot more. Homeschooling is expensive but with a salary like that you could even afford tutors...Aside from that, you may also find you could make it work with him being able to attend regular schools. Find out how much they actually travel. I know you miss the court. Maybe this could be your ticket back on. As for Tooru...I think him being everywhere is likely to be an improvement for all of you. I think you should think about this very seriously, Hajime. You likely won't get another chance like this."_

He exhaled slowly, running his thumb along his brow as he considered his mother's advice, chewing the inside of his cheek. "Right... That's why I called. Thanks, Kaa-chan. I'll keep you updated," he promised, sitting back again as a breeze picked up. "Love you."

_"Love you, too, Hajime. Let me know if you need anything."_

"Course... Bye." He hung up and dropped his phone into his lap, watching the clouds for a moment; he'd need to ask Tooru about travel, and moving in, but in the end he would have to sleep on it. 

_What great timing for it all... Damn..._

Tooru had pulled dinner from the oven when he returned, plates and cutlery out already. 

He bent over the back of Katashi's chair, peering at his homework. "Ready for me to check?"

"Yup! Dinner is ready, too," he nodded, eyeing the plates hungrily. 

"You guys dig in," he nodded, picking up the paper and glancing it over; he tucked it into his son's folder and set the bag aside before joining them.

"How was work?" Katashi piped up when neither adult moved to start any conversation, his eyes glancing between them curiously.

"Hm? It was the same old same old," Hajime replied, Tooru setting a full plate before the boy with a small tired smile. "That older lady came back again..."

"Is she getting any better? She said she was gonna get super fit," Katashi asked with a giggle, grinning at Tooru. "Thank you!"

"Mmhm. She's catching up," Hajime nodded, ruffling his hair and watching Tooru for a moment, realizing that he was a little off. Rather than point it out, he busied Katashi with his meal, asking him about his day at school.

"Can I go play with a volleyball out back, Tou-chan?" he asked after the meal, Hajime washing up the dishes at Oikawa's sink.

"Yeah, sure; just stay away from the pool when you go out back, alright?" he nodded, offering him a smile.

"Okay, I will," Katashi promised, scurrying off with his ball happily. 

Tooru watched him go from his place near the fridge, a tiny smile touching his lips. 

"Good kid. It's nice to have the yard in use again," he said, running a hand through his hair and breaking the stillness of his former position. He started out of the kitchen then, hands disappearing into the pockets of the sweats he'd changed into. 

"Tooru," Hajime called, drying his hands on the nearest towel as he followed him a step or two. "Hang on a sec?"

"What's up, Iwa-chan?" he asked, pausing in his steps and half-turning to Hajime.

He opened his mouth and then closed it, a bit uncertain what to say; he shrugged and met his gaze after a moment, asking bluntly, "Are you okay?"

Tooru's lips twitched once and then he was simply studying Hajime, distant and impassive, for a few beats. 

"I'm all right," he finally said, expression settling into a neutral smile. "You should go help Katashi with his serve. I think that's what he wanted to work on. I'm just a bit tired to help him today."

He nodded after a moment, pausing again in front of him- he didn't remember walking closer, but it didn't really matter. "Alright..." Hajime stared at him a moment longer, and then wrapped an arm around him in a brief but warm hug. "We'll be out back if you need us."

"Thanks, Iwa-chan," Tooru murmured, chin dropping to tuck his shoulder for a second. He pulled away swiftly, disappearing into the depths of the house. 

Hajime sighed and headed out back to help Katashi, his head swimming; he'd just have to start working out the details tomorrow, then.

They practiced for as long as the sun stayed out, and then headed in just before dark.

"Tou-chan?" Katashi prompted as they walked through the livingroom, heading for the hall leading to the guest room. "Tooru-chan's house is kind of... plain. Do you think we could make some pictures for his walls?"

Hajime blinked once and then glanced around. It suddenly clicked into place why the house always seemed so strangely perfect-but-empty. There were no real pictures on the walls, no posters or drawings or personal touches anywhere. The boy had a point. 

"...yeah. That sounds like a good idea, Tashi," he nodded.

"Okay! I have some paper and crayons in my back pack," he beamed, trotting to the kitchen table. 

Hajime ran a hand through his hair, sitting down with Katashi while he meticulously drew out a few masterpieces.

"He'll love them," Hajime assured about twenty minutes later, searching out some scotch tape and helping him hang them in the halls. "I think this one should go on the fridge." He smiled faintly at the rough depiction of the three of them, a volleyball in the air between them.

"Okay," he agreed, yawning hugely and rubbing at his eyes. "You hang it and I'm gonna go brush my teeth, Tou-chan..."

Hajime nodded, ruffling his hair. 

"I'll come tuck you in shortly." 

He made his way down to the kitchen and came across Tooru as he was leaving it; the setter was stretched out on the couch in the living room, the television on to reruns of an old sitcom that he was staring at through glazed eyes.

"Hey," Hajime hummed, plopping onto the couch beside him gracelessly. "Hope you don't mind the new decor."

"Hm?" Tooru looked over at him as though just noticing him. "New decor?"

"Tash thought you could use some pictures," he nodded, gesturing at the hallway. "You'll have to check them out later... I gotta go tuck him in. Mind if I come back out after?"

"Ah...yeah. It's fine, Iwa-chan," he nodded, peering toward the hall with the faintest flicker of curiosity. 

"Alright. I'll be right back." He lurched back to his feet and strode down the hall, putting Katashi to bed swiftly.

Before he returned to the couch, he rummaged around Oikawa's kitchen until he found some hot cocoa mix, bringing two steaming mugs over. "Scooch."

Tooru grunted and scooted over, muttering a thanks for the mug that Hajime pressed into his hands. 

"Welcome." He sipped from his own and then set it aside, kicking up his feet tiredly; he waited until Oikawa had sipped some of the chocolate before lifting an arm in invitation, eyes locked on the old sitcom.

Tooru shifted to lean against his side automatically, mug cupped between his large hands and head tilting to rest his crown against Hajime's. 

Iwaizumi sighed silently, his fingers tracing a circle into Tooru's upper arm soothingly; he simply sat with him, offering the best warmth and comfort he could in agreeable quiet.

"'m glad you're around, Iwa-chan," Tooru mumbled sleepily sometime later, his eyes closed and his weight loose against Hajime's side. "'S'not as bad..."

"Any time, Tooru... I want to be around again," he muttered back, squeezing his arm. "I think we'll take you up on that offer, if you'll still have us here."

"Course I'll have Iwa-chan..." he slurred tiredly. 

"Good..." He shifted slightly, lifting his hand to Oikawa's hair gently. "Get some sleep, Tooru."

"Mmhm...you too, Iwa-chan..." 

He hummed agreement, relaxing a little more as he felt Tooru drift off.

_Yeah...We're not going anywhere..._

-

Hajime woke up to a ray of sunshine directly in his eyes, a soft groan leaving his throat as he rolled over, an arm slinging across his tired eyes; his back and neck ached from sleeping on the couch, but he was too warm and comfortable to bother moving just yet, instead leaning into the drowsy warmth between consciousness and rest.

Eventually he forced his tired eyes open, blinking blearily a few times as he stared into a warm cinnamon hue; it took him a minute to realize that it was Tooru, the brunette offering a faint smile.

"Morning, Iwa-chan," he said, eyes much clearer than they had been the night before.

"Morning," he muttered, shifting slightly and rubbing at his eyes. "Feeing better today?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "What about Iwa-chan? You seemed stressed yesterday."

"Mah," he waved off, pushing himself up and cracking his back. "Just have to make some phone calls."

"Mmkay...I have to head to the gym," Tooru said, sitting up slowly himself.

"Right. When you get back we need to talk about living together," he reminded, running a hand through his hair. "What do you want for dinner? I'm off today."

"Surprise me, Iwa-chan," he chirped, looking pleased at the mention of living together.

"Tashi can pick, then," he joked, moving over to let him get off the couch. "And next time let's try not to fall asleep on the couch, he suggested, rubbing at his neck.

"I do have a bed that would fit Iwa-chan," Tooru smirked.

Before he could reply, Katashi came bouncing into the living room, shoving a paper in Oikawa's lap excitedly.

"What's this, Tashi-chan?" he asked, examining the paper curiously.

"I drew you another picture! You and Tou-chan slept in," he giggled, bouncing on his heels.

Hajime leaned over, peering at the drawing and feeling his ears warm at the boxy drawing of the couch.

"What a cute picture, Tashi-chan," Tooru admired, ruffling his hair.

"This one if for your room," he beamed, looking over at his father. "Can we have food now, Tou-chan? But not the cardboard please!"

"Thanks, Tashi-chan- cardboard? " Tooru blinked.

Hajime laughed, tossing the boy over his shoulder as he stood, "He means your cereal. I bet there's some eggs we can scramble, Tash."

"Its good for you, Tashi. Gotta eat good to be a good volleyball player," Tooru called poutingly.

"Yeah, but you can still have good flavor," he replied, wrinkling his nose at him as Hajime carried him to the counter.

"Put some honey on it," Tooru called.

"Sweet cardboard isn't much better, Tou-chan. I thought you would know that," he giggled at him, peering over the back of the stool; Hajime nearly dropped the egg he had grabbed from the fridge, glancing at his son.

Tooru was staring at him from over the back of the couch, eyes wide and surprised. 

Tashi flushed, sinking into the stool and swiftly turning to the kitchen. "Don't burn my egg this time, Tou-chan!"

"Uh, right. I'll try," Hajime replied, turning to the pan. 

Tooru made his way across the room to wrap the boy in a hug, drawing a squeak of surprise from him.

"Do you want to have eggs too, Tooru-chan?" he asked, hugging him back happily. 

"I'll have one, yeah, if you think you can share," he teased, ruffling the boy's hair vigorously. 

"Better make extra," he giggled, mussing up what he could reach of Tooru's bed head in retaliation. 

"Alright, but Tooru needs to go get changed if he's going to the gym today," he reminded the brunette, his chest warming.

"Yeah, I probably should," he agreed, releasing Katashi and disappearing down the hall. 

"He is much happier today," Katashi told him in a loud whisper, leaning on the counter top happily.

"I think everyone is," Hajime agreed, setting a bowl down before him and helping him crack a few eggs on the rim.

"Yeah. It's a good day," Katashi decided, dropping the last of the shells into the trash. "Whisking time, right Tou-chan?"

They had breakfast ready by the time Tooru returned, Katashi just placing a few slices of banana on his plate.

"Looks tasty," Tooru complimented, settling down at the counter. 

"It is," Katashi assured, patting his arm sympathetically. "No wonder you come to eat with us all the time; it's gotta be better than your cardboard squares."

Iwaizumi snorted and choked on a mouthful of egg, thumping his chest firmly.

Tooru, meanwhile, shook his head. 

"Someday, the only growing you'll be able to do is around the middle, and then you'll understand," he sighed. 

"Nope! I've got a really good tummy, and I'm gonna play lots of volleyball, so I'll never get round," he beamed cheekily, stabbing at another bit of egg.

"You say that now," Tooru teased, amused. 

"Know from experience?" Hajime's eyes twinkled at him as he poked at Tooru's side. 

"When you get to our age, Hajime, it gets harder to keep up with those kids they bring in," Tooru replied gravely, taking his plate to the sink. 

"I guess I'll see for myself," he shrugged back, refilling Katashi's glass.

"I'm sure you will," Tooru hummed, ruffling Katashi's hair as he made his way toward the door. "See you boys later."

"Bye," he waved, grinning after him.

Hajime cleaned up after they finished the meal, sending Katashi to play out back while he made a few phone calls. 

The travel that would come with his job was a fair amount, but less so than he worried; the only real issue might be leaving during the Olympics, but his mother would be more than happy to watch Katashi. He'd still be spending less time with his son, but he could take him along to practices and weekend games, and the pay that he'd get really made the job impossible to turn down. 

So by the time Tooru returned for the day, Hajime had filled out the paperwork to accept the new job. 

"Hey," Hajime nodded at him as he strode into the kitchen, Katashi tossing a volleyball around out back. 

"Hey, Iwa-chan," Tooru chirped, making his way to the fridge to browse through it absently. 

He watched him rummage for a moment, arms crossing over his chest comfortably. "I'm taking the job."

"You are?" Tooru asked, turning to Hajime with an excited look. 

"I am. Called your coach today," he nodded, rubbing the back of his neck. "And we need to talk about living arrangements if we're staying with you."

"Amazing, Iwa-chan. I'm happy for you," Tooru said sincerely before folding his own arms and leaning against the counter. "Living arrangements...you two could stay as long as you like. Forever, really. I don't mind."

"I want to contribute to costs," he replied firmly, leaning back. "And Tashi's going to need his own room. And you need to tell us if you ever want us gone; I don't want to get between you and a girlfriend or something."

Tooru snorted at that last, shaking his head. 

"Right...well, we can split the utilities if you want," Tooru suggested. "It's a five bedroom house. Tashi can have his pick." 

"Thanks... What? Are you having problems with women now too? I find that hard to believe." Hajime furrowed his brows at him, turning to the oven as the timer went off.

"...I-"

"Tou-chan! I did it! I can jump serve!" Katashi crowed as he sprinted into the kitchen, eyes bright with excitement. 

"Yeah? That's great, Tashi-chan. Let me take this off and you can show me, okay?" Hajime hummed. 

"Okay! You too, Tooru-chan!" he insisted, grabbing his hand eagerly. 

"Right...let's see it," he nodded, letting the boy pull him out the door.

Hajime placed the night's casserole on the stove top to cool, and then hurried after to join them in the yard, grinning as Katashi sent a jump serve sailing over the lower net.

"That looks great, kiddo," Tooru complimented. "You're really getting up there. How's your accuracy?"

"Well, that's not too great yet, but I'm working on it," he promised, bouncing on his heels. "Will you help me tomorrow?"

Hajime hooked his thumbs into his pockets, bumping Tooru as he caught up. "If he's off, I'm sure. I can help you too."

Katashi pouted at him, crossing his arms, "Tou-chan, you're not as good as Tooru-chan."

"The jump serve is my specialty, it's true," Tooru pointed out, eyes amused. 

"Ouch," Hajime chucked, ruffling his hair. "And how are your spikes going?"

"Ummmmmm we're talking about Tooru-chan right now," he redirected swiftly, pointing at the brunette.

Tooru laughed and shook his head. 

"Come on...dinner is going to get cold."

"Yeah Tou-chan," he agreed swiftly, taking Tooru's hand and bouncing back towards the patio. "Dinner's gonna get cold."

Hajime rolled his eyes and sighed, rubbing at his brow; apparently Katashi was going to start mimicking again.

"He still loves you," Tooru said as they were cleaning up after dinner, Katashi watching his favorite show. 

"Hm?" Hajime glanced over at him, passing off another plate. "Oh. Yeah. I just worry he'll turn into you," he smirked, picking up another dish.

"Lucky kid," he winked. 

He chuckled and finished up at the sink, drying his hands while Tooru put away the last of the dishes. 

They both settled on the couch to watch TV with Katashi after, Hajime draping his arm along the back of the couch comfortably; his eye twitched when Katashi flipped the channel and "Baby Shark" started playing. Katashi grinned rather mischievously at Tooru and then proceeded to clap and sing along with the song, leaning close to his father to make sure he heard every word.

Hajime managed about half of the song before he muted the TV, rubbing at his brow, "Please, Tashi. Anything but that."

"But what, Tou-chan?" the boy asked innocently. 

He clenched his jaw and sighed, looking at him seriously. "I will give you anything in the world that I can manage. Just not that song."

"Annnnnnything?" Katashi asked, eyes wide and innocent. 

"Within reason," Hajime agreed, already regretting his words.

"Ice cream for breakfast!" 

"...Okay, but you have to have fruit with it."

"Iwa-chan!" Tooru gasped, eyes wide. "For  _breakfast_?"

Katashi looked up at him, his lips forming an angelic 'o' as he started up again, "Doo doo doo doo..."

"Yes." Hajime pinched his son's sides lightly, shaking his head. "I never said I was a model dad."

"You're the best dad in the whole world!" Katashi beamed, hugging his father. 

"See," Hajime shrugged at Tooru, wrapping his son in a firm embrace. 

"...right," Tooru nodded, shaking his head. "Whatever you say, Iwa-chan... Enjoy the sugar rush."

"Says the one who used to eat milk bread every day," Katashi hummed slyly, peering over his shoulder at the brunette.

"Aw, Iwa-chan, you told Katashi about me?" Oikawa beamed, pinching Hajime's cheek forcefully. 

He growled warningly, eyes narrowing.

"Of course!" Katashi gasped, scrambling to his feet and grabbing Tooru's shoulders. "You're his best friend! He told me all kinds of stories to try and make me like spikers better!"

Iwaizumi cringed at that, his ears hot. "That was not why, Katashi."

"Uh huh," Tooru hummed, arching a brow at Hajime, eyes alight with mirth. "Wanna know a secret, Tashi? He's got a soft spot for setters. Always has."

Katashi giggled back at him, leaning up to whisper something into Tooru's ear excitedly, his cheeks turning rosy with whatever secrets he was giving up.

"Oh, is that so? You've got good taste, Katashi-chan. Like father like son," he chuckled. 

He leaned closer to whisper more and then paused, glancing at his father. "Mmmm we can talk more later. Okay?"

"Okay," Tooru chuckled, ruffling his hair. "You know, you should probably pick out your room soon."

"Huh?" he blinked, titling his head at him.

"We're staying with Tooru," Hajime elaborated, leaning back into the couch. "I'm picking up our stuff this coming weekend to move in."

Katashi's eyes widened and he beamed, bouncing up and down happily for a second before looking up at Tooru. 

"I can have any room I want?" 

"Well, you can't have mine, obviously," Tooru winked. 

"But any other?" 

"Any other," he promised. "They're all down the hall if you want to look."

"Okay!" he nearly shouted, leaping off of the couch and racing down the hall.

"...what?" Tooru said in response to Hajime's look. "He's happy."

"You're spoiling him."

"Says the one who's feeding him ice cream for breakfast!" he laughed, throwing his head back.

"...That's not the point. Meh. What was he whispering about?" he prompted, crossing his arms.

"He's got a puppy crush," Oikawa chuckled. "On a setter."

He blinked, brows furrowing as he went through the few possibilities. "...I see... Why didn't he just say it?"

"I don't know. Maybe he's embarrassed," Oikawa shrugged. 

"Hm." He glanced down the hall and then shrugged, leaning back into the cushions. "Hand me the remote before he comes back."

Shaking his head in amusement, he offered Hajime the remote. 

"Thanks. Animal planet alright? It's all I can watch when he's up," he sighed, switching the channel swiftly. 

"Ancient aliens would be better, but..." Tooru trailed teasingly. 

He narrowed his eyes and locked gazed with the brunette, reciting the same damn intro to his conspiracy documentaries word for word and then adding, "So no."

"...mean," Tooru pouted, pulling his knees to his chest. 

"Just trying to keep a little sane," he corrected, pinching his side as he turned back to the screen. 

"I'm completely sane," Tooru pointed out. 

"Only insane people say that," he winked, mussing his brown locks.

"If you say so, Iwa-chan."

Katashi returned eventually, having chosen the room across from Iwaizumi's; it had a large window, much to his delight, that looked out over the back yard.

"We'll have to help you get it decorated properly," Tooru hummed, looking both pleased and amused. 

"Yeah! We have to put up my stars and pictures," he agreed, yawning hugely.

"Mmhm... Let's get you to bed, kiddo; you look beat," Hajime mused, cradling him against his chest as he stood.

"All right..." He yawned again, clinging onto Hajime sleepily. "Night, Tooru-chan..."

"Sweet dreams, Tashi-chan," he smiled, watching them disappear down the hall.

Hajime returned to find him passed out on the couch, laying in an awkward angle that would most definitely screw up his back by morning.

After a moment's contemplation, he readjusted the setter's limbs and hooked his arms beneath him, lifting him up with a grunt; he certainly hadn't gotten lighter over the years.

"Iwa-chan?" Tooru muttered, eyes opening a crack. 

"No. I'm an alien," he grumbled, taking his time striding down the hall. "Go back to sleep."

Of course he has to wake up when I do something nice for him. 

"Not an alien...sillywa-chan..." 

He rolled his eyes and shuffled through the door to Tooru's bedroom, carefully lowering him onto his mattress. "There. Night."

"Where you going?" Tooru asked, peering at him blearily. 

"To bed," he replied, pausing; he flicked the blankets over him smoothly, knowing how he bundled up at night.

"...right. Night." The words were spoken quietly, something worryingly off in his tone.

He frowned, hesitating to go. "...Unless you need me?"

"Good night, Iwa-chan." 

Hajime scowled and turned away, shuffling out the door with his fingers jerking through his hair; he never knew what Tooru wanted anymore.

He threw on his pjs and brushed his teeth at the sink, frowning at the mirror; guilt tugged at his stomach with worry, and as soon as he rinsed out his mouth, he went straight back to the brunette's room. He wouldn't abandon him anymore, and he certainly wasn't going to leave him alone in one of his funks.

Iwaizumi closed Tooru's door behind him and crawled into bed, laying down heavily.

Tooru stiffened slightly as Hajime settled, his elbow brushing the brunette's back. 

"...welcome back, Iwa-chan," he said, sounding a bit odd. 

"Mm." He sighed and pulled the blankets over himself, checking that his phone alarm was on before settling completely. "Good night," he muttered, though he felt wide awake.

"Night."

They laid in silence for the next few minutes, until Hajime decided he couldn't sleep just yet and rolled over instead, snagging his phone to scroll though an app or two.

Tooru shifted after a while, pulling his blanket up higher and curling up a bit tighter into a ball before stretching out fully again. 

Hajime let him do it three times before propping himself up on his elbow, arching a brow at him. "Now you can't sleep at all?"

"...it's your fault," Tooru mumbled. 

Iwaizumi deadpanned, closing his phone. " _My_ fault?"

"Yes." Tooru pulled his blanket over his head. 

"Care to explain?" he scowled, rolling over now to face his back.

"No," Tooru said simply. 

Hajime's scowl deepened and he readjusted again, taking extra care to shake the bed as much as possible until he was resettled again. "Fine."

"...rude..." 

"...Trashkawa."

"Brute."

"Asskawa."

"Mean!" Tooru grunted, kicking a foot back at Hajime's shin. 

He snorted, ignoring the hit, "Brat."

"Hmph." The blankets shifted higher again, and then they were flung back as Tooru strode stiffly to the bathroom. 

Hajime rolled his eyes and flopped onto his stomach, burying into the pillows and taking a long breath; his back relaxed steadily at the familiar scent, mind wandering lazily through vague memories as a sleepy warmth blossomed in his chest.

Tooru returned some time later, crawling quietly under the covers and curling up on his side with his back to Hajime. 

He exhaled slowly, struggling a moment to lift his heavy arm impatiently. 

"Mm?" Tooru grunted, glancing over his shoulder as Hajime's hand landed on his side. 

"Mm...Sleep..." he slurred into the pillows, fingers fisting in his shirt and dragging him into his side.

"Okay, okay...pushywa-chan," he muttered, settling back against Hajime's chest. "Good night."

Iwaizumi just sighed, arm hooking around him snugly as he drifted off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Probably the last chapter I'm posting for a little while, as I'm getting busy again! Please let me know what you thought in the comments below! And as always, thanks for reading!


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Zilla-cakes, Work, and a Trip Down Memory Lane

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So sorry for being late and inconsistent with posting, but here's a longer one for you to make up for it! As always, I hope you enjoy and please let me know what you think in the comments!
> 
> I did switch the POV for this first part, but back to Iwaizumi at the ~ skip :)

     Tooru woke up early to no alarm, panicking for about five seconds before he realized that it was Sunday, his day off, and that he didn't even need to be awake for another hour at least.

     This lasted about two minutes before he moved to roll onto his back, his mind too awake to doze the morning away- but something surprisingly heavy stopped him, a solid wall flush against his back.

_What the hell...?_

     Blinking blearily, he craned his neck around to find a head of dark hair buried against his shoulder. 

     A rush of joy thrilled down his spine, warming him to the very core as Hajime nuzzled closer, grunting in protest at Tooru's attempt to move.

     Lips twitching into a smile, he allowed himself to settle back against his solid chest, basking in the warmth.

     For nearly ten minutes he enjoyed pretending that things were just the way he wanted, tucking his cheek against the raven's bicep, his finger tips reaching out to his calloused hand. Perhaps Hajime wasn't a completely lost cause...

     The door creaked softly a while later, Tooru's eyes flicking to the frame and finding Katashi's eyes peering at them.

     "G'morning, Tashi-chan," Tooru murmured, sitting up slightly.

"Morning," he whispered, shuffling over quietly and leaning on the edge of the bed. "Can we make Godzilla pancakes for Tou-chan?"

"Of course we can," Tooru nodded, glancing back at his friend. "Well, assuming I can get free of him."

"He gets very cuddly," he nodded sagely, grabbing a throw pillow from the floor and offering it to him.

"I remember from when we were kids," Tooru chuckled, carefully replacing himself with the pillow. 

He grabbed onto Tooru's much larger hand, holding a finger to his mouth as they tiptoed out to the hall.

"Have you ever made Godzilla pancakes before?" Katashi questioned once they were in the kitchen, already tying on one of Tooru's oversized aprons.

Oikawa's mouth twitched at the sight, eyes watching him fondly; he reminded him so much of Hajime. "It was a very long time ago, so you'd better take the lead on this," Tooru advised, grabbing the little stepping stool he kept beneath the sink. 

"Okay! It's not hard," he nodded eagerly, retrieving a big bowl and a bag of pancake mix from the counter. 

As they mixed up the batter, Katashi blushingly asked him about girls, sitting on the counter for a "better whisking angle."

"So. Tou-chan isn't much help with girls," he started, peering up at him. "He's never had a girlfriend, I don't think. But he says that you had a bunch."

"Well, I did make the rounds as a young man," Tooru admitted slowly. 

"Was it the hair?" he questioned, giving over the whisk and running a hand through his own choppy locks, streaking white powder through them.

"The hair helps," he chuckled, whisking the batter vigorously. 

"Hmmm..." He pressed his hands to the counter top, leaning against it. "Maybe I should put that sticky stuff in my hair too."

"I can help you style it, if you want," Tooru offered, glancing down at him. "But the hair isn't everything, you know."

He pursed his lips into a pout, resting his chin against the granite. " I know that. I think I'm pretty nice... But girls think I'm gross. And they can be really mean."

"They'll grow out of that. Especially once you start showing your stuff more at volleyball," Tooru promised, ruffling his hair. "Give it a couple years and they won't be one girl who won't want to be your friend, kiddo."

He nodded and fell quiet for a bit, and then just as he was measuring out a bit of batter, he asked, "So why aren't you married, Tooru-chan? Or dating?"

"Haven't found the right person yet, I guess," Tooru said airily, controlling his reaction carefully; his hand was steady on the measuring cup. 

"Or you're waiting," he suggested, crossing his arms. "Baa-chan seems to think so."

"Oh? What does she think I'm waiting for?" Tooru hummed.

"For Tou-chan to accept he's gay," he replied bluntly, crossing his ankles. "She rants a lot in the car."

Tooru blinked and felt heat crawl into his neck, gasping as he messed up the design; a bit of extra batter served to fix the mistake, and he glanced at the boy again suspiciously. 

"Not bad," the boy complimented, peering down at the shape and then grinning up at him.

"Told you I could do them," Tooru hummed, prodding at the cakes impatiently.

He giggled and grabbed the spatula, watching just as restlessly for the cakes to bubble. "I think it means that he likes guys."

Tooru looked at the boy again and smiled slightly, leaning against the counter. "That's correct, Tashi-chan... There's nothing wrong with it," he specified lightly, anxiety needling his chest at the boy's furrowed brow.

"Of course not, Tooru-chan," he huffed, tilting his head back. "I love gay people," he declared passionately, puffing up his chest. 

"Do you? That's good, Tashi-chan," Oikawa hummed, ruffling his hair and stifling his laughter at the boy's eager assurance. The tightness in his torso eased a bit. 

The boy grinned wider at him, rocking on his feet as he glanced at the pancakes. "I think we should have ice cream on top."

"With our breakfast? I'm not so sure about that one," Tooru advised, brow arching at his puppy eyes.

"Tou-chan promised," he smirked, tapping the spatula lightly against the older man's chin. "Sillykawa-chan."

"Go get the carton then, you little brat," Tooru sighed, shaking his head. "And watch who you're calling Sillykawa."

"Heh heh!"

Hajime shuffled out just as Katashi was arguing with Oikawa over how many ice cream scoops he could have, yawning hugely and stretching his arms behind his head blearily.

"Are those 'Zilla cakes?" he asked, leaning over Katashi and intercepting the forkful of pancake his son was about to eat.

"Yup," Tooru nodded, smirking smugly as the boy exclaimed his displeasure. 

"Tastes great," he complimented, pinching his son's sides as he settled into a seat. "Hand me a plate, Oikawa?" he requested, catching Katashi's waggling digits as he tried to tickle Hajime's side. "When did you guys get up?"

"A while ago," Tooru shrugged, setting a plateful in front of Hajime. 

"Thanks." His gaze swept over him once, eyeing him critically; he seemed to be pleased with whatever he saw, nodding to himself. "You look rested."

"Slept good," Tooru said simply, settling with his own plate of pancakes. 

"Tou-chan is good at keeping the bad dreams away," Katashi added in, his mouth dribbling ice cream.

"Wipe your chin, Bud," Iwaizumi laughed, handing him a napkin. "And there better not be more than two scoops in that bowl."

"Only one and a half," Katashi pouted after wiping his mouth. 

"Good." He scooped up another bite, glancing at Tooru again briefly.

"You're welcome, Iwa-chan," Tooru said pointedly. 

"Thank you, Chefkawa," he answered with a full mouth, eyes twinkling.

"Iwa-chan! Such a brute, I swear," he grumbled, swatting at his shoulder. "Use your manners!"  

Both Iwaizumis laughed, bumping fists beneath the counter.

Hajime graciously took care of the dishes afterwards, and then threw on some old shorts while Katashi gathered his creepy crawly hunting supplies.

Tooru took residence on the couch, turning on one of his alien documentaries comfortably. From where he was, he could see the Iwaizumis through the window every so often, pawing through the grass and chasing the occasional butterfly wildly with a net.

It brought a permanent smile to his mouth, the muffled shouts of laughter tickling his ears warmly, chasing away the usual lonely silence that haunted him most Sundays.

Things were so much different with the father and son around, but it was a change he definitely wanted to get used to.     

     ~

Hajime was up early for the first day of his new job, hurrying Katashi around to drop off at school. 

"Do you want to just ride with me to work?" he offered Tooru as he packed Katashi's lunch box, glancing up from the task.

"Sure," he chirped, shouldering his gym bag and snagging his house keys. "Thanks Iwa-chan."

He nodded back and zipped the box closed, clipping it to Katashi's bag. "Ready Bud?"

"Yup!" he chirped, snagging his granola bar and jumping down from the stool. 

They piled into Hajime's truck swiftly, tossing their gym bags into the back, and making it to Katashi's school just in time to avoid the lineup. 

"Have a great day Tashi!" Hajime called after him.

"You too!" he beamed, waving before bouncing past the gates.

"Ready for your first day?" Tooru asked as they rode. 

"Yeah, think so," he shrugged, fiddling with the radio. "I'm supposed to get all of your files today and observe regular routines."

"Sounds like a pretty easy day. Just get to watch me work out," Tooru winked. 

He snorted, shaking his head with a chuckle, "Right...It'll be a long day."

"I dunno, Iwa-chan. They say time flies when you're enjoying yourself."

Rather than reward him with a verbal response, he punched his shoulder lightly and then turned into the gym parking lot. "Bakakawa."

"Iwa-chan," Tooru whined, rubbing his arm. 

"Come on; I don't want to be late." He snagged his bag and Tooru's from the bed of the truck, heading towards the building doors.

"I'm coming," he huffed, hurrying forward and grabbing his bag as they reached the door. 

He blinked but let go of the strap, simply holding the door. "You lead." 

Tooru nodded, striding along the halls of the complex confidently. Their footsteps echocoed familiarly as they walked, the scent of sweat and rubber filling Hajime's nose.

"Morning Coach," he greeted as he ducked into the locker room, lifting a peace sign cheerfully.

"Good morning Oikawa," the elder man nodded, straightening up as Hajime trailed after. "Ah, Iwaizumi. Come with me," he hummed, waving him over before stepping into his office.

The raven shouldered his bag and followed after, slapping Oikawa's back as he passed. "See you on the court."

The room was surprisingly spacious, decorated in the team colors of red and white. There was one large desk that Coach settled at, a second positioned in one of the corners with his name on it.

"This is yours; the files on our players are here, and our game plays are already in the computer. You can have any locker that isn't taken," Coach informed him, tapping a stack of folders resting on the oak top. "We start stretches in ten minutes, which should give you enough time to settle. I'll introduce you after," he finished, shaking his hand firmly. "Welcome to the team."

"Thank you," Hajime replied warmly, inclining his head politely. "I will do my best."

Shortly after getting situated at his desk, he snagged a notepad and headed for the gym.

Oikawa turned out not to be the only familiar face, several others from their years in high school and college popping up in the group. They all greeted him cordially enough, seeming to recognize him as well.

"Now that we've all met," Coach Sato interrupted, clapping his hands together, "Let's get started. Coach Iwaizumi is going to be observing for the day, and by next week he will hopefully have an improved regime for us."

_Coach...that's definitely a new one._

The group nodded and dispersed back to their exercises around the room, Hajime's eyes following them.

"Good to see you around."

Hajime glanced over his shoulder, a bit surprised to come face to face with Sugawara Koushi. "Ah... It's good to be around," he nodded back, turning around fully.

The silver-haired man grinned in response, peering at the team as they started warm ups. "They're still a handful, but they're great. After Kageyama was recruited this year, I retired to be an assistant coach; I just can't stay away, I guess," he chuckled, pocketing his hands. 

"Aa... Well, they're not gonna miss me much in a week," he mused, already making a few notes about their performances. "Does Ushijima always favor his left shoulder now?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Sugawara nodded, tilting his head.

He frowned faintly, tapping his pen against the notepad. "What's he do to care for it right now?"

"Ice. Occasionally massages," Sugawara grimaced. "We keep warning him he's going to blow it out."

"He will at this rate," Hajime confirmed, his frown deepening. "...Anyone else have problems like that?"

"Not really," he shrugged. "Oikawa occasionally has his moments, but he knows better."

"Mm...He won't have any more of those moments. Neither will, hopefully." Hajime started around the court, intending to observe them a bit more closely. 

Most of the day was spent focused on the other members, only pausing at the end of their practice match to watch Oikawa; he knew what the brunette needed as it was, but it was still entertaining to watch him play.

His style overall hadn't changed much, largely focused on drawing the best out of his players, though his skill had sharpened considerably. He had also gotten faster and honed his spiking capabilities, Hajime shoving own the jealousy he felt as he heard the smack of the ball against his palm, ricocheting off of the ground.

"You really have improved," Hajime remarked as the group headed back to the locker rooms, catching up to Oikawa's side.

"Oh, you _noticed_?" Tooru huffed shortly, a severe pout on his lips. 

Iwaizumi paused, stymied by the response; after a moment, he rolled his eyes and slapped the brunette upside the head. "Don't be an idiot, Bakakawa." He ducked back into his office to catch Sato, ignoring his friend's childishness.

     "So, what do you think?" the elder man questioned, leaning back in his chair. 

"I think they all need to tweak their exercise regimes. They're fit but definitely not in peak condition," Hajime replied, crossing his arms. "I'm worried about Ushijima. I think he needs a week off with no arms, and a more intense treatment for his shoulders; he's going to blow them out by the start of season at the rate he's going."

"Consider it done. I'll trust your judgment on this one," he nodded. "Adjust their regimes as you see fit."

"Thank you sir.I'll tell him now."

Hajime left the room immediately, eyes searching the room until he spotted Wakatoshi standing at his locker.. 

Ushijima was not impressed with Hajime's plan, to say the least. 

"You...want me to what?" 

"No arms. One week," he repeated firmly, crossing his own arms. "You're going to ice and heat for twenty minutes each, and four times a week you'll be having an in depth massage session. You can come in for legs, but no arms."

"...I have to stay in shape," he said flatly, frowning at Hajime.

"One week won't kill you. After that you can go light duty, and then we'll take it from there," he replied firmly. "Losing a little muscle is better than losing your whole shoulder." Hajime turned around and strode off before he could say more, searching the lockers for an empty one and automatically gravitating towards Oikawa's.

Oikawa was smiling rather smugly when Hajime approached. 

"I cleaned out the locker next to mine for you," he informed him airily, eyes glittering. 

"Thanks," he muttered, stuffing his things inside of it unceremoniously. "What's with the smirk?"

"You yelled at Ushiwaka."

"He deserved to be yelled at. And you're next if you don't ice that knee tonight."

"Of course I will," Tooru grumbled with a roll of his eyes. He picked up his home bag. "Ready to head out?"

"Just let me grab some files," he confirmed, snapping the lock into place. He headed back into the office, ignoring Ushijima's stare.

Tooru didn't fail to notice, his mood only improving as he sang along to his crappy music on the ride home. 

"Kaa-chan's keeping Katashi tonight," Hajime informed him as they climbed out of his truck, files tucked under his arm. "So we can do whatever for dinner."

"Oh yeah? Wanna go out somewhere, Iwa-chan?" he suggested. 

He glanced at the files, hesitating. "...Might be nice. Haven't seen Mattsun and Maki in a while."

"We should go," Oikawa decided. "You can look at those later."

"Alright. But I need to shower first." The raven ducked inside and headed for his room, a slight bounce to his step.

Oikawa emerged in one of his trendy outfits a while later..

"Where to?" Hajime asked him as they headed out the door, sporting a simple button down for the occasion. "I'm thinking burgers."

"Burgers sound great, but I'll have to work it off," Tooru pointed out with a faint smirk.

"I'll help you," he waved off. "We're celebrating."

"Ooh~ Iwa-chan, how kind of you," Tooru grinned wickedly. 

Hajime punched his arm with a flush, pausing in the driveway. "Your car or mine?"

"Mine," Tooru decided, sobering up a bit. "Or we could Uber." 

"Hm. Let's just take mine; it's already out of the garage." The raven unlocked the truck door and climbed inside. "First thing I'm doing with my paycheck is setting aside some for a new truck. Poor thing's probably got another year left."

"Maybe," Tooru replied, glancing around the cab. "It's been around a while."

"Mmhm...Probably cost twice as much to fix up," he grunted, pulling out of the drive carefully. 

They made comfortable small talk in between the radio, Oikawa switching it to the station he knew Hajime preferred for once. This had Hajime in a slightly better mood than usual as they reached the burger place, Tooru leading the way in. 

"Can we have that corner booth?" Hajime requested as the waitress glanced at her chart, the raven pointing at the same booth they'd gone to for years.

'Sure," she shrugged, leading them over to the booth and setting menus down for them. She got their drink orders before taking off again. 

"It's been a while," Tooru mused, peering around the restaurant. 

"Yeah. They redecorated," Hajime agreed, leaning back in his seat. "Tashi likes getting milkshakes here."

"Is it all still as good as it used to be?" 

"Just as," he promised, smiling faintly at him. "We should split a small shake."

"For old time's sake," Tooru agreed, grinning. 

They ordered a strawberry milkshake when the waitress returned, along with the classic burgers and fries combo.

"I think I'm going to like being Head PT," he remarked at Tooru once the woman walked away, leaning on the table. "Feels good to be around the court."

"You looked like you were in your element again," Tooru mused, leaning his chin into his palm. 

They chatted back and forth about the team for a while, Hajime confiding his plan for getting the team back into peak form over the small milkshake. 

The first juicy bite of Hajime's burger made all the calories and grease he was taking in utterly worth it.

"They're so good," Tooru moaned around his own first bite. "Haven't had one in years..."

"Too long," Hajime sighed, taking another large bite and trying not to laugh at Tooru's expression.

"Way too long," Tooru agreed, chomping down on the burger again. 

Hajime snagged the milkshake while he was busy, dipping his fries into the dessert swiftly. Tooru shook his head at him when he looked up once more, nose wrinkled. 

"You're crazy, Iwa-chan."

"You just don't know what's good," he corrected with a smirk, dipping another pinch of fries and then tucking them into his sandwich for another delicious bite.

"Oh, I know what's good," Tooru insisted with a smirk of his own. 

Hajime arched his brow and laughed, "Right. Care to share? Or would you rather be enlightened by this flavorful masterpiece?" The raven proffered his burger, fries and strawberry cream dripping from the sandwich.

Tooru looked scandalized. 

"That's disgusting, Iwa-chan." 

"How would you know?" he laughed, taking another bite before grabbing a napkin. "I can't imagine anything better than this."

"Anything is better than that," Tooru said with a shiver of disgust. 

His eyes rolled and he focused on finishing off the burger, wiping his mouth clean once the entirety of the meal was nestled in his stomach.

Tooru had been refusing to look at him since he started eating, and he was still enforcing that policy, poking at the ketchup on his plate with a fry. 

"That hit the spot," he hummed, sitting back with a content sigh. "You can look now; the shake is all gone," he added laughingly, tapping his shin beneath the table. 

"Hmph. Can't believe you did that," Tooru muttered, still staring at the table. 

"No?" he mused, frowning faintly as he caught the expression. "You alright?"

"I'm fine," he said, looking up with a faintly sheepish smile. "Just messing with you, Iwa-chan." 

He glanced him over uncertainly, leaning forward. "Mm...Bullshit."

"..." Tooru scowled, huffing sharply when it was evident that Hajime didn't plan to drop it. "I forgot how much I missed it." 

"Hanging out?" he clarified, crossing his arms. "...Shockingly enough, me too," he muttered, only half teasing.

"Yeah?" Tooru smiled. "I am irresistible, arent I?"

"Something along those lines," he allowed, rubbing the back of his head. "Well, should we keep up the tradition, then? Next stop would be the park," he proposed, catching his gaze.

"That's a cute idea. Let's go," Tooru cooed, brightening up as he handed the waitress cash for their meal.

Hajime opened his mouth to protest, but Oikawa shooed the woman away swiftly before he could get in a word. 

"I could have gotten half," he grumbled, glancing at the brunette.

"I always got the bill, and if we're following traditions..." he trailed off with a smug smile.

"Brat," Hajime grunted, shaking his head.

"Brute," Tooru winked, getting to his feet. "Let's go to the park."

The park was almost exactly the same, Hajime instantly wandering over to the sandy volleyball court; the net hung in tatters by now, in severe need of replacing.

"It's been a long time," Tooru said softly, coming to a halt at the back of the sandy court, his hands absently hovering in front of him as though holding a ball.

"...Yeah." Hajime shuffled around the sand, smiling faintly as he came across an engraving in the net poles. "Aoba Johsai," he read off, crouching slightly to see it. "Still has everyone's initials."

Tooru wandered his way over, peering at the pole over Hajme's shoulder. 

"I remember doing that," he recalled. 

"Your hand writing was shit," Hajime nodded, ducking the swat.

"I was scratching it there with a nail!" Tooru huffed. "Yours only looks better because you're basically one step up from a caveman anyway."

His eyes rolled at that, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "You know I have no artistic talent, Bakakawa."

"This isn't art, Iwa-chan. It's scratching letters into a pole." 

"Excuse you," Hajime argued, pointing at a blob beside I.H. on the pole. "I did not spend twenty minutes trying to etch Godzilla right there for you to say it's not art."

"Oh, that's Godzilla...Maybe I need new contact prescriptions again," Tooru teased, squinting at the scratches.

Iwaizumi lunged for him, chasing him around the court and cursing "Bakakawa," "Shittykawa," and as many other variations he could think of, the brunette shrieking with laugher.

"Excuse me!"

They froze, Hajime holding Tooru in a headlock as an officer approached them; hastily they disentangled from each other. 

"Sorry, officer," Tooru said, offering a respectful bow. "Got lost down memory lane, you know?" 

"Right..." he frowned, glancing between them sternly. "You do know the park is closed after sunset?"

"Er...we do now. Apologies, again. We'll go now," Tooru said a bit sheepishly, starting to edge off toward the parking lot with Hajime in tow. 

"Sorry," the raven nodded.

They climbed into the truck swiftly and headed off, Hajime shaking his head. 

"Well...that was an experience," Tooru said, looking over at Hajime flatly. 

He snorted, running a hand through his hair, "All your fault. You shouldn't have been shrieking."

"Maybe someone shouldn't have been chasing me around," Tooru countered indignantly, eyes twinkling. 

"You deserved it," he argued, glancing over at him with a laugh. 

"Did I?" Tooru asked. "Just for critiquing your art?"

"Among other things," he nodded, slowing down to a halt at a light. "The bill, for example." He reached over and plugged the AUX cord into his phone, scrolling through until he found the playlist he wanted (all the way at the bottom, having been so long since it'd been played).

"I haven't heard this song in ages!" Tooru exclaimed as the list started to play. 

"It's my old pre-game playlist," Hajime shrugged back, rolling down the windows. "Left, right, or straight at the next light?"

"Left," Tooru decided, his eyes closing as he let his mind fill with memories of a powerful young body floating over a net to his left; he could hear the dual impacts of the ball in the beat.

They drove around for quite some time, neither really having an end goal in mind, just listening to the music and enjoying the night ride. 

Eventually though, Hajime turned into Oikawa's drive, shutting off the truck and leaving them in a charged silence.

"...Tooru..." Hajime trailed off, watching the brunette quietly until he met his gaze. Spending the evening with him, Iwaizumi realized just how much he'd missed him, guilt churning in his stomach for the way he'd treated him over college; he deserved a proper apology. "I should never have cut you out like I did. It was inexcusable... I am sorry."

A little of the happy light in Tooru's eyes faded, replaced with a softer, quieter expression of contemplation.

"We were best friends, Hajime. But it's not like we were ever more. It's not your responsibility to constantly take care of me. And it happens. People go their separate ways. Obviously, I would have rather you didn't do what you did, and I was mad and sad about it for a long time. But you're here now. You've let me back into your life in a big way, one you certainly didn't have to." 

"...Well, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon," Hajime promised, fiddling with his keys.

"Good. I know where you live, even if you tried," Tooru added teasingly. 

Hajime snorted, shaking his head, "Bakakawa... Come on. Let's go in."

"All right, Iwa-chan," Tooru chuckled softly, slipping out of the truck and following him into the house. 

"X-files?" Hajime suggested as they reached the couch, flopping into the cushions.

"Sounds good to me," Tooru nodded excitedly, picking up the remote and selecting his favorite episode. 

The raven yawned into his shoulder and settled as comfortably as he could, ending up against Tooru's side to watch with half-closed eyes. Oikawa's arm slid around him, a solid comforting weight as his eyes closed the rest of the way, nodding off in the next few minutes.

 

 


End file.
